Resounding Healer
by Sorre
Summary: Think of any series with a broken, inconsistent powers system. What comes to mind? Naruto? Bleach? Nah, the most headache inducing system is easily DxD and I have the dubious honor of being reborn in this world. Whoever did this didn't even give me the advantage of a Longinus or some noble lineage, the fucker. At least I'm not cannon fodder? !OC-Insert !Reincarnation/Transmigration
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Dying x Dreaming**

I died. Yep, Leith Owens, med student, died. It was for a pretty stupid reason too. I mean, I'm a fucking med student; I should have known better than to eat that bad piece of salmon. Long story short, my immune system's never been great and I caught something that made it worse. Go figure right, I learn to take care of everyone else's bodies but neglect my own. I was hospitalized and some nurse forgot to wash the needles properly so I got infected and everything spiraled downhill from there. Good intentions and road to hell and all that.

Anyway, I'm talking to you because I was reborn. For lack of a better word, my soul transmigrated from my world to that of DxD. How do I know? Well, the giant red dragon doing cartwheels in a rainbow sky that looked like a psychedelic stoner's wet dream might have been a clue. Yep, I ended up crossing the Gap and saw Great Red spazzing out. Thankfully, I was thrown into the human world before he noticed or I'd have been Dreamed out of existence or something.

As you might expect, I was placed in a fetus. Do you have any idea what nine months in a womb feels like? I assure you, you don't know boredom like I know boredom. The only thing to keep me company was a note that floated in front of my vision. It wasn't literal, I knew that. Fetuses don't really have functioning eyes, but I saw anyway. I had always doubted the existence of the soul, but if I wasn't living proof, I didn't know what was. Was some random being speaking through my head? Possibly, but whatever the case, I decided to pay attention to it.

 **You are something of an anomaly. You were supposed to be thrown into the afterlife, but you slipped between the cracks. I was too lazy to deal with you after that so I just tossed your soul into another dimension. You are now occupying what would have been a stillborn infant. Yes, you are in the world you knew as DxD. Yes, you do have a Sacred Gear. Yes, you do have the potential for magic. No, you don't get to find out what they are before even being born. This is all I'll ever do for you so you don't get crushed into oblivion too quickly.**

 **Have fun,**

 **Death**

Needless to say, I wasn't too happy about that. I ranted and raged and must have kicked hard enough to give my new mother a hell of a time until I just didn't have the strength to vent anymore. It would have been one thing if I had been sent to correct something. At the very least, I would have had purpose. No, I just need to live my life apparently. People don't realize it, but too much freedom is just as terrifying as not enough. Everyone is looking for direction and I suppose that now that I'm not a med student looking to save lives, I lost mine. Maybe I'll pick that up again? I guess it would depend on my Sacred Gear and whether or not I want to enter the supernatural world. In the end, I fell dormant, the pulsating heartbeat of my mother comforting me. Anyway, I was born, my head was squeezed through a vagina, and some asshat in white slapped my asscheeks. I… don't ever want to go through that again. For that matter, I'm not too keep on sucking on some woman's nipples either… Fuck.

X

Constant blows to my dignity aside, nothing special happened until about my second year. At the age of two, I was already being called a prodigy. I mean, how many people can say their kid reads and speaks fluent Italian by two? Yes, I wasn't born into a good old British family like I was in my last life. This time, my name is Luca Rossi and if I might say, I am one adorable baby. Though I think my lack of crying unnerves my parents a bit. I wasn't all that attached to my parents, I remember being a grown man after all, so that was just fine by me. Sure, they were decent people, but they weren't _my_ parents. Keeping me at a distance left me to my own thoughts anyway. Mission One: Find out when in the timeline I am.

Everything kind of fell apart when my family was caught in a car crash. I know, I live in a reality where devils, angels, and gods exist. I live in Rome, what had to be the locus of European supernatural affairs. And I almost died from a car crash… Fun fact: Car seats aren't foolproof. Another fun fact: When a toddler's head crashes into the back of daddy's skull, daddy's skull wins.

So I lay there dying, in unspeakable agony. No really, I literally couldn't speak because I was in too much pain and the paramedics had given me up as lost. If the frantic shouting was anything to go by, so were my parents.

'Is this how I'm going to die?' I asked myself. 'By some freak accident, I got the second chance most would kill for and I'm going to die at the age of two? FUCK NO!' I mentally screamed out, the haze of pain clearing momentarily as my adult mind supplanted the instincts of a toddler. My surroundings faded to black. The sound of shouting, the incessant whining of sirens, all of that was muted out. Instead, I heard a beat. Then another. And another. Slowly, it dawned on me that I was hearing my own heartbeat. It grew fainter and fainter, weaker and weaker with each passing second. 'No… No! I won't die like this! God, Death, Akasha, Red, whatever the fuck you are! You can't push me here and let me die due to some shit luck!' I cried out.

As my toddler heart weakened, something clicked within me. I felt myself infused with a warmth. It was a feeling and it felt _emerald_. It's hard to describe, but for whatever reason, I survived. The doctors would call it a freak miracle and sure enough, I was adopted by the Church. Of course, none of that registered. I was too out of it to care. No, the only thing I remember from those few days was the blackness and a name that resounded throughout my consciousness. _Twilight Healing…_

X

So yea, I have Twilight Healing and I awakened it at an age that should have been impossible. Growing up in the Church was… honestly kind of lackluster. I mean, there was no brutal training regimen (I was two!) and I'd heard the Bible stories before already. Sure, they were boring, but they did hold some of my interest since, you know, I know for a fact that angels exist and all. The priests did try to get me to use Twilight Healing again, but I refused. Or rather, I played dumb and they chalked my survival up to a freak accident. To be fair to them, I was two so that was a rational assumption.

I had no intention of going to way of Asia. I didn't feel like being spoonfed all my life because I got myself designated as a saint or something. Besides, I knew exactly what the loyalty of the Church was worth: jack shit. Call me a cynic if you want, but aside from some of the truly good people like Xenovia and Griselda, the Church wasn't all it was cracked up to be. The teachings of the Bible are good, but the Church… not so much.

For the next eight years, I practiced using Twilight Healing in the secrecy of my room. I would bite my own finger, make it bleed, then heal it. It… wasn't a pleasant experience, but considering even healing a small tear on my finger tired me out, I wasn't willing to try to heal anything bigger. Slowly but surely, I did get better and realized something: my Sacred Gear was a subspecies. Instead of a ring like Asia's mine had no clear manifestation. Like Kiba's Sword Birth, its true form was a mystery to even me. I did find that my healing was more effective when I hummed a tune so that's what I became known for in the Church: music.

When I was six, I told a priest that I'd like to learn martial arts and a week later, I was assigned a tutor. Instead of swords, his emphasis was on not getting hit and stalling for time. It made sense once I thought about it: As a wielder of Twilight Healing, they probably wanted me as something like a combat medic. It stood to reason that they would train me in evasion rather than direct combat. I… I couldn't say I was entirely satisfied, but I decided to just roll with it. Every night, once my training was over, I would tear myself apart in my room with exercise, only to heal it over with Twilight Healing.

The longer I had it, the more I realized that Asia was squandering her Sacred Gear. Sure, it didn't help me recover from mental fatigue, but it did help strengthen my body. Unlike in my past life, my immune system was off the charts. Some fanfictions I read talked about how healing a strained muscle would prevent it from growing any stronger, but that was false. Twilight Healing didn't revert the muscle to its previous state, it accelerated the body's own recovery process. I made good use of that and by the time I was ten, my physical development was clear to see.

X

I discovered my magical affinity when I was eleven and I "awakened" my Sacred Gear. I was, predictably, ushered into a more rigorous training program. I did pay a visit to the Church's hospital wing on occasion, but for the most part, I pretended that using the Sacred Gear was tiring on my person. It wasn't that I didn't want to help, more that I didn't want the attention of the big players yet. Already, the stories of the Holy Maiden were trickling down to me and I couldn't help but compare myself to her. Was I stronger than her? Definitely, I've been using Twilight Healing for longer. Was I worthy of having it at all? Now that was a more difficult question. In the end, I settled for "I wouldn't abuse it so it should be fine." I did find out that she was my age, so that was nice.

Really, I should have seen it coming. My fascination with rhythm should have been a big clue. I was keeping pace with beats literally since before I was born. I slept to my mom's heartbeats after all. When I first activated my Sacred Gear, I tuned out everything except the rhythm of my own heart. When I used Twilight Healing, it got easier if I hummed something. My magical affinity was music and I felt like an idiot for taking so long to figure it out. Since then, I had been obsessed with three types of books: medical, magical, and musical. It was really amazing just how quickly my development progressed after that.

I would never be a frontline fighter, but I did gain the ability to heal at range. That was Asia's big weakness; she had to be touching her target. I did not. I could sing and pick someone to heal. As long as they were listening to the song, my magic could transfer to them. I thought of it as Sona's Aria of Perseverance from League of Legends. It worked pretty much exactly like that, except without a shield and only on one person at a time. Hopefully, that would change soon enough.

I coughed blood as I was thrown from across the room by my trainer. Father Leon was a retired exorcist who had been assigned to me specifically. "Luca, how many times have I told you to stop sitting around? You can't react; if you want to be an effective fighter, you must preempt my movements and avoid them!"

"I don't want to be an exorcist," I wheezed out. "I'm a medic!"

"Bah, same thing!" I crawled to my knees and began to heal myself. Yes, I had gotten better, but that wasn't saying much because Father Leon held back a little less with each training session. The end result was that I got my ass kicked an equal amount no matter my own growth. He studied me for a moment. "We'll stop the physical training for today." He motioned for another trainee to enter.

The trainee was a girl a few years older than me. She was plain, but what caught my eye wasn't her, it was what she was carrying. You would gawk too if you saw a wannabe exorcist enter a room while trying to fight off the incessant pecking of a rooster held in her arms. At Father Leon's nod, she snapped both wings cleanly. I thought I could see a satisfied smirk for a moment. Holy warriors exorcists may be, but they were not above being petty.

"Sing and heal one wing," Father Leon said.

I nodded and dug deep for the warmth I had grown to love. My song started as a whisper. It was the song I used every time I had to heal something. It used to be a favorite back in my old life and it was still good now.

 _Reach out, hands in the air  
Don't care, just what they're sayin'_

An emerald glow surrounded the rooster's left wing.

 _Hold out, just keep on hopin' against hope  
That it's gonna get better_

Slowly, it began to calm and its agitated shuffling died down.

 _Don't worry, there's no hurry for you or for me  
Everything's gonna come around_

I felt myself tire a little from the effort of using my Sacred Gear following a hard workout, but pressed on.

 _Shout out, someone will listen to you, to me  
Someone's gonna see, yeah_

By the time the first two verses were done, the rooster's wing was healthy again. Father Leon nodded. "Now sing another song. This time, don't sing a song associated with healing, sing something associated with war or something."

I complied. When I first found out about my magical affinity to music, I began to experiment with different types of songs. I could channel my Sacred Gear through any song, or even just random humming, but it was more efficient when I did it through a song about healing or comfort. Maybe it was my own psychological association, but whatever it was, it worked. I was a bit surprised to think it took Father Leon this long to ask about that.

 _Death surrounds  
My heartbeat's slowing down_

This time, my Sacred Gear came with a bit of resistance. As much as I liked the song "Fight Back" by Skillet, it wasn't exactly associated with comfort. By the time I was done healing the rooster, I had gone through the entire song rather than just two verses.

X

"I can't keep doing this," I told myself. I was 13 now and my training had gotten worse. It seemed as though they were saving all the borderline abusive crap until my healing was good enough to let me survive it. Now that it was, it wasn't strange for me to be carted back to my room with several broken bones. I would wake up long enough to heal myself then immediately pass out.

Unfortunately, while my martial arts had grown by leaps and bounds and my magical reserves were also similarly large, I had very little else to show for the spartan training regimen. I was garbage with a sword. I couldn't shoot straight to save my life. I didn't have the finite control or patience to construct magic circles and runes. Basically, I was good for healing and singing and maybe healing while singing. The problem was simple: I had tons of ideas on how to improve, but few ways to go about it without drawing attention.

On the more mundane side of my education, I learned general diplomatic skills and protocols I was expected to know as an agent of a supernatural faction. I got to choose two of the many languages employed in the supernatural world and I chose Arabic and Japanese, bringing my count of fluent languages to four including my native Italian and pre-death English. Arabic I chose because I wanted to learn more about the ancestral home of the three factions. Japanese I learned as a matter of necessity. I wasn't sure when I'd get to Japan, but I was sure I would eventually.

The fantasy media of my old world was filled with those who could sing magic and I fully intended to recreate them. If I did it right, I would be able to defend myself using noise. So, in order to leave myself room to grow, I had to fall off the Church's radar. I began to purposely lag behind in everything. Soon enough, I became known as the "Dullard Songbird" by my fellow trainees and teachers alike. When I succeeded in becoming a part of the decoration, I decided to leave. I wouldn't be missing the place that had been home for 11 years of my life.

Sure, a 13 year old would have trouble making his own way in the world and some of the priests were genuinely good people, but I would rather the chance to pick my own destiny than to be pigeonholed into the role of a subpar exorcist. As a psychic cat-thing once said, "I see now that the circumstances of one's birth are irrelevant. It is what you do with the gift of life that determines who you are." And no one will determine what I do with this gift of life but me. No one.

 **Author's Note**

 **What do you guys think of my new story? Yes, it's another OC insert. If you haven't realized, it's not a self-insert. I can't be both a med student and a poli-sci student at the same time, though I do wish I was that awesome.**

 **I got this idea from one scene in the Inheritance Cycle. It was Brom describing Selena's ruthlessness and how she took down multiple experienced warriors without lifting a finger. If you know the scene, you might have an idea of Luca's Balance Breaker.**

 **I'd also like to point out that I just covered 13 years of someone's life in 3,000 words. His worldview has shifted quite a bit. In the beginning, in the womb, Luca was enraged that he would be reborn without a purpose. The final quote suggests quite the opposite. He has chosen to seize that lack of purpose and make his own.**

 **Also, no lie, that quote is the most impactful quote of my childhood. Mewtwo made me cry. Cyber hugs to anyone else that cried for him too.**

 **How strong is Luca? People always seem obsessed with that, as though everyone's power can be measured like Dragon Ball. He's actually really weak. He's stronger than any regular human adult, but on the supernatural scale, he's kinda at the bottom of the barrel. Not only is he young (13), he's also only good at healing and avoiding hits. He's not fast. He's not strong. He doesn't even have any skills that let him hurt his opponent besides punching them. Will that change? Absolutely. How? You can wait and see.**

 **As always, constructive feedback is appreciated.**

 **Pat reon Sorre**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Drive x Devil**

I gave the little girl a warm smile as I finished bandaging her sprained ankle. She babbled something excitedly at me, but I never learned Romanian formally so I could only catch a word every sentence or so. Even so, the joyful "thank you" was well received. It had been three years since I abandoned the Church and while I couldn't say I was wealthy, I certainly wasn't dead in a ditch. 'Small mercies,' I thought drily.

X

When I first left the Church, I had done my best to leave Rome as quickly as I could. I didn't want to be followed and decided to make myself scarce. I packed some food, a coat, and one light gun and got the hell out of dodge. Most days, I wandered from place to place while pretending to be a street musician, my skill at singing and the "cuteness" of my youth more than enough to afford me three meals a day. While I didn't always have a roof over my head, I did well enough to get by in the cities. Whenever possible, I would visit the soup kitchens and with a quivering lip, beg myself a free meal. Slowly but surely, I saved enough money to leave Italy. With as much nonperishable food as I could carry, a blanket, and one change of clothes, I stowed away on the first ship I could find.

Contrary to popular belief, Africa was not solely made up of savannahs and deserts. The cities along the Mediterranean were diverse and colorful, filled with bustling economies of their own based on trade. Granted, a fair bit of that trade was illegitimate, but that only left more room for runaways like me to disappear to. I snuck off the boat with the casual ease of a boy trained to avoid far more perceptive, far more supernatural threats than an underpaid watchman and into Egypt's bustling city of Alexandria. 'That… was easier than I expected it to be,' I thought to myself.

After exchanging some of the euros for Egyptian pounds, I wandered a local bazaar and bought myself a quick meal of diet bread and kofta kabobs. As I was walking around looking for a hotel, I felt a slight brush against my pocket. Had I not been trained with the intention of fighting the supernatural, I might have missed it altogether, but I was, so I was also far more perceptive than normal. I reached out and twisted the offending arm by the wrist into a classic three point pin. While the main purpose of the Church exorcists was to combat supernatural threats, they often had to deal with hysteric survivors or humans wanted for questioning so basic submission techniques were included in their extensive lesson plans. I was no master, but I could manage holding down some scraggly orphan.

"Let me go!" the child shouted in Arabic.

"Hmm, how about no?" I guided him by his pinned arm to the side of the street. It said much about the neighborhood that not one person batted an eye at the us. "Now, seeing how I'm not some hapless idiot waiting for you to pickpocket, you're going to compensate me for your efforts by showing me to the nearest inn. Do we understand each other?"

He struggled for another minute or so before he sighed in resignation. Eventually, he led me to a ratty old inn with ratty old blankets that probably had more bugs than than Snowden's laptop. I only stayed for a night before leaving for the more inland parts of Egypt.

X

I stood about six miles away from some village with a name I had already forgotten. It's not like I was expecting the Ten Plagues level of excitement or anything, but holy shit, Egypt was boring. Outside of Alexandria, Cairo, the pyramids, and the Valley of Kings, there really wasn't a whole lot to see. Oh, I also saw the Egyptian national army's orchestra butcher the Russian anthem. That… that was a unique experience, no two ways about it. They were absolute garbage and Putin stood there looking like the most constipated bulldog in the world. The orchestra was so bad that after I had my laugh at Putin's expense, I developed the very first of my sound magics: Null Space. It worked exactly as it said on the tin; it would negate all sound within a certain radius from myself. After Cairo, I bounced from place to place and worked to develop better control over my sound magic. By the time I left the urban areas, I could control the extent of my hearing and alter my own voice somewhat. After I did some of the obligatory touristy crap, I hustled myself over to the northeastern tip of Egypt.

Roughly, I was in a nameless village near the Zaranik Protectorate, their equivalent of a national park. The goal now was to recreate some of the more colorful sound based magics from the fiction of my world. 'I could do so much better if I had a guitar or something,' I thought.

Nonetheless, I made the best of my situation. I first decided on Black Canary's Canary Cry from the DC universe as my beginner skill of choice. Sure, I liked Dinah Lance as any straight male would, but my choice had more to do with the relatively simplistic nature of the skill rather than any desire to be her miniature. The Canary Cry, and no way in hell was I going to call my variant that, was basically a really high pitched scream that struck like a solid projectile. I figured screaming really loudly at a high pitch while channeling magic would be fairly simple compared to some of the other bullshit techniques here in the DxDverse.

As it turns out, I was smart to pack some cough drops because my throat was sore as all hell by the end of my little training session. Looking back, it was this experience that convinced me that I needed to stop being human as soon as possible. I wasn't about to start leaping for the first chance to become a supernatural species, but I was definitely considering joining Sona. Not Rias, the overgrown tomato-woman weirded me out. Humans basically did not have a magical system of their own. Most human magicians either gained their powers through their Sacred Gears, their contracts with supernatural entities, or through their magical cabals. Even magical cabals focused on one school of magic, for example, Norse, over another.

Devils on the other hand, had it easy. They were beings formed of magic and magic required nothing more than imagination and willpower for them. I could brute force a spell without a magic formula, but that was the equivalent of trying to force Issei to stop thinking with his dick. It was doable, but only temporarily and he would regress too quickly for it to be worth attempting. I got my Canary Cry. I decided to name it the oh so creative Sonic Roar. I know, I am the lord of all chuunibyou. Bow to me, all you weebs. I had a functional magical attack, sort of, but it was so tiring that I could only use it three or four times a day or my throat would feel like it was being torn apart. That… was probably because it was. I just didn't have the stamina to keep healing myself with Twilight Healing either. If I wanted to use my impressive magic reserves to the fullest, I would either have to nut up and learn how to calculate magic formulas, or join a devil's peerage.

And yes, I would rather give up my humanity than learn math, even magical math critical for my continued survival. I really hate math.

After my training session, I resolved to find myself an instrument. If nothing else, it should help keep my throat intact. Over the next three years, I would slowly crawl north and back into Europe, where I would meet a certain impossibly adorable magical girl. Well, that's not to say nothing interesting happened between Egypt and Romania…

X

Fun fact: Trying to cross the Egyptian-Israeli border without authorization is not a good idea. I had to stow away on another ship that sailed for Lebanon and skip Israel altogether. If I'm being honest, that was probably a good thing. I'm trying to avoid the Church and short of Rome itself, nothing screams "Heaven's Hotspot" like Jerusalem. I moved from village to village as a wandering doctor while covering my face with a black scarf. Sure, they weren't as big on the age of majority as the western countries, but a fourteen year old with magical healing powers tended to draw attention. This way, I just ended up as a creepily short doctor who really valued his privacy.

It was in Turkey that I first had my encounter with the supernatural. When I was moving through southern Turkey, the inhabitants swore to gut me if I called it anything other than Kurdistan, I stopped by a dusty old village. I didn't speak Kurmanji, or Kurdish, but most were happy to help a wandering doctor by sticking to Arabic. On the whole, they were a friendly, if cautious lot.

The village I was at was impoverished, that much was clear from the worn out cars that had layers of dust caked over them like fresh fallen snow. Wood and brick buildings dotted the village. I could not find a single building without at least a few cracks caused by age and it was as though they had never heard of the concept of paint before. And yet, any negative impression I had of the village was immediately overturned with a single look at its occupants. They were smiling. Every last child had a bright, cheerful grin that I wouldn't find unusual in Disneyland. They were dusty and sweaty and looked like they should all be collapsing from heat stroke, but I could tell they wouldn't have it any other way.

Suddenly, I felt something cold and sharp dig into my back. "Walk," someone hissed behind me. I tried to turn, but my assailant grew more insistant with the knife, giving me no choice but to comply. I could tell the voice was young, feminine, but that was all I got. "I thought I told you bastards to leave this town alone!"

"Look, I have no idea who you threatened to stab before, but he sure as hell didn't tell me!" I cried in Arabic.

"Right, like I'd believe one of you warmongering trash. Can't you see that this village has nothing else for you to take? We don't have any more men because you got them all killed in the name of your Kurdistan!" she spat the nonexistent country's name like a curse. I felt for her, but my primary concern was to somehow convince her to stop jabbing me every few words. I think she broke skin.

I sighed. It was always the passionate ones that were so hard to reason with. "Fine, fine… I'll just go see your leader or whatever." I began walking according to her directions, reinforced by the unsubtle prodding of the knife at my back. We stopped at a relatively well maintained home and stepped inside.

"Try anything and I will kill you," she warned.

"No, really? I had no idea," I gasped in mock surprise. "I thought the knife digging into my spine was just the way you said hello around here." My snark got me another painful prod. As much as I poked fun, her voice told me all I needed to know about her sincerity.

Inside, the home was quite cosy, with an old school rug on the floor and a worn but comfortable sofa in one corner. She ushered me into a room towards the back. I was about to make another smartass quip about taking strangers to bed, but I saw that the bed was already occupied. The man lying in the bed was fairly young, mid to late thirties at most, but he looked like he could be twice that age. Wrinkles lined a face that still retained much of its youth. Tired eyes that saw too much stared back from sunken caves. He muttered what I assumed was a greeting in Kurdish. At least I found out the name of my oh so convincing captor: Amira. If I remember right, that meant "princess" or somesuch.

She whispered something back, either in Kurdish or too low for me to understand, but I did get the gist that they were close. She sure as hell didn't sound so tender towards me. "Can't you see what you so called 'freedom fighters' have done to my father?" she whispered harshly, back to Arabic.

I stood there, processing that for a moment. She… thought I was Kurdish… She thought I was an extremist looking for soldiers to fight whatever war was going on in the Middle East these days. "Look, Amira, that's your name, right? I'm going to take off my mask so you can see my face. Then you are going to apologize for this horrible misunderstanding. Can you please not stab me until after we've done that?"

I slowly reached up, palms out and well aware of the knife still at my back, and removed the black cloth covering my face. Perhaps it was a bit of a stretch to call that cloth a mask, but I really just needed it so people wouldn't question the extremely young doctor and if I'm being honest, I liked to pretend I was a ninja… a little… fuck you. I turned around and smirked as Amira gasped at the sheer manly sexiness that was my face. No, of course not. She just realized that I'm Italian… you know, not Middle Eastern…

"Oh… I'm… sorry?" she said with a wince.

Contrary to my expectations, she was not wearing a hijab, a head scarf. It took me a moment to remember one of my friends' lectures about different types of Muslims. He always was more involved in international development and anthropology than me. He said that Kurds tended to be the more moderate sorts of Muslims and Kurdish women could be employed outside of the home and face less discrimination if they chose to not wear a hijab. I… didn't much care at that moment. Hey, Amira's cute, with her hazel eyes, long, silky brown hair, and tan skin, but she was still holding a knife to my chest. Fourteen years old or not, I had priorities and my life trumped puberty, if only slightly.

"You know," I said drily, "you don't sound very apologetic when you say it while pointing a knife at me."

She hastily pulled away as if burned by my words. "Sorry," she mumbled again. "I thought you were a recruiter." She then seemed to gain some strength. "Why were you hiding your face?" She stared at me accusingly, as though I had something to hide.

"I… I wanted people to think I was older," I admitted. "It makes traveling alone easier, less questions." Beside us, the man in the bed groaned in pain. I was entirely forgotten as Amira tended to her father. "I don't mean to be rude, but what's wrong with him?"

"The recruiters came," she spat with more vitrol than a young girl should have. "They couldn't find any more young men to go to war for them so they dragged off my father. He was returned without a leg."

"I…" I began to say something, but fell silent. What could I say? Shall I tell her how sorry I am? She would much rather stab me than accept such a meaningless apology from a stranger. I could tell, she was that sort of person. Then, I got an idea. Like it or not, Twilight Healing existed to heal people. Besides, who would believe her? "Let me help."

"You?"

"It's a big part of why I hid my face. I'm something of a wandering doctor. Please let me help," I implored. "The worst I can do is nothing." She moved aside reluctantly and I pulled away the blanket to uncover a horrific wound. Clearly, some idiot had thought amputation could be performed with rusty hacksaw. No, I was fairly certain I could do better with a rusty hacksaw than whatever other torture utensil they used. "Michael's holy scrotum this is bad. Which dumbass treated you?" I asked. Amira's father looked at me blankly.

"He doesn't speak Arabic. And why do you swear by an angel's genitals?" she said with only a hint of amusement.

"It's sacred, pure, and entirely unused, the poor bastard."

"Well, now if you're done gawking at my father's injury, get out of here."

I turned towards the young woman. For a moment, she was taken aback by the seriousness of my eyes. "Look, I can help your father. Just, just promise me that you won't tell a soul about what you see here. I doubt anyone will believe you anyway, but I don't need that kind of attention."

She nodded shakily. I removed a small ocarina. She stiffened and her hand reached for her knife when mine went into my sleeve, but relaxed when she saw what I was holding. Slowly, I brought the instrument to my lips. A haunting melody filled the room. She gasped as an emerald light filled enveloped her father and I. Slowly, the hastily sewn stitches that held the man's ragged wound together fell apart. Piece by piece, each strand detached itself from his stump as he moaned with relief. New flesh replaced the bloody scar and although I did not have enough magic to heal his scar entirely, I could make the skin grow over the injury, granting Amira's father some much needed peace.

"I… How..." she stammered.

I turned and gave her a saucy wink. "I'm awesome. Admit it."

The sudden shift in my behavior knocked her out of her awe. She scoffed as she gave me a light shove. "Right, of course you are." Her voice dripped with enough sarcasm to fill Willy Wonka's chocolate fountain. "Thank you," she said, this time with far more sincerity.

"Now tell your father that he must never speak of this. I really don't need anyone on my ass so soon."

"I don't think you need to worry about that," she said. "You showed me your most precious secret for no reason than to help my father. The least I could do is to show you mine."

"I don't think this is the place for you to strip."

She punched me. It hurt. She and her father traded some back and forth before he nodded. "Idiot. My name is Amira bint Arsalan."

"So… Princess, daughter of the Lion? I guess that's a cool name."

"Yes, but I am telling you because it's not just a name. You are not the only supernatural being in this room." Suddenly, fire filled her hand. It crackled with the warmth of her smile. "My father does not have the gift, but my family is descended from the union of Arsalan, king of Roum, and his wife, an ifrit. We are djinn, at least in part." Slowly, the orange flame in her hand lengthened and when it died down, she held a scimitar. The sheathe was of lacquered cedar and bore intricate designs of lions. It was capped with a golden tip that held a shining emerald. When she drew the sword, I saw that it was equally beautiful, as elegant as it was deadly, with folds that were clearly visible in the blade and a golden hilt that was encrusted with emeralds. Honestly, looking back, I would like to punch myself for my stupidity. Here, a supernatural being just drew an obviously enchanted sword in front of me and I was gawking at its beauty, not getting the fuck out of there.

No, it wasn't its beauty that entranced me. I grew up in the Vatican after all. Luxury to the point of overindulgence was the norm, not the exception there. I was entranced by its aura. Once, when the Church still held the slightest hope that I might have potential with a sword, I had encountered an Excalibur Fragment. Excalibur Nightmare was brought to the Vatican and all hopefuls were lined up to see it, a way of saying, "If you work hard, you might have the privilege of doing more than looking one day." Like every other hopeful, I was astounded. It was easily the coolest thing I had ever seen. Obviously, it didn't work out.

I mention it because the sword before me was… holy. It was holy in a way that even the Excalibur Fragments were not holy. Unlike them, this one was whole.

"Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār," she said, "the Emerald Encrusted Sword."

"Wait, is that actually its name?"

"Yes. My ancestors weren't known for their creativity, okay? Anyway, this is a holy sword that many say is on par with Excalibur, or perhaps Caliburn. It was the sword that confirmed my ancestor, Amir Arsalan, as king of Roum, what is now Istanbul. I don't know what you did or how, but as you can see, I am quite aware of the supernatural."

"I see… so what now?"

Whatever she wanted to say, we were interrupted by her father. He had sat up and embraced his daughter with all the passion of a man who just nearly died. To be fair, that injury was probably going to get infected so he very well might have. "C-Can we have a moment?" Amira asked.

I nodded wordlessly and left the room. Half an hour later, she emerged from her father's room with a teary smile and puffy eyes. When she saw me, she leaned down and gave me a passionate hug. "Thank you," she whispered, "You have no idea what this means for me."

I awkwardly patted her back. "You already said that." She drew back and for a moment, we stared at one another in uncomfortable silence. "So… what now?"

"That depends, what do you plan to do now? Of course, you are welcome into our home, but what do you hope to achieve by traveling alone? With your abilities in healing, I'm sure there are plenty of magical cabals that would be happy to teach you."

I laughed, but it came out bitter and hollow. "As if. I have no talent for magic. What you saw was the Twilight Healing, a Sacred Gear. I have some control over sound based magic, but things like equations and algorithms are beyond me."

I don't know what came over me, but after that initial admission, everything sort of tumbled out. I told her everything. I told her about how I was trained by the Church. I told her why I left. I told her that I didn't want to be lifted onto a pedestal, burdened with responsibility that no human could possibly endure. I told her of my desire to see the world and my desire to become a devil. I know, that probably wasn't smart, but adult mind or not, wandering the desert as a fourteen year old took its toll. It wasn't exactly a moment of soul-searing confession, but I at least felt a weight lift that I didn't know I was carrying. Perhaps I spilled because I knew she wasn't likely to talk to any other supernatural. Or perhaps I was just being a hormonal fourteen year old in front of a cute older girl. Either way, she remained silent through my miniature tirade. Then, as I finished, she wrapped me in another warm embrace.

"Yeah, I've always wanted to see the world too. When I first found out that I could wield the Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār, I was afraid," she confided. "I couldn't imagine why the sword appeared before me. It was supposed to be lost after all. No one had held it since my ancestor and there it was, just hanging in front of me like it was always meant to be. No one in the village knows, you know. My dad told me the legend countless times, but I always thought it was just a story, a cute fairy tale to help me sleep. I eventually started to practice on my own, in secret, but when the recruiters came, I wanted to fight. My dad stopped me. He said that the sword of God should not be drawn to defend those who would harm others in his name so he went in my place. When he came back like that," she sniffed as she pulled away, fresh tears in her eyes, "I almost lost it. I almost burned those heartless bastards alive."

Eventually, we fell into another awkward silence. Life is funny like that. One moment, you could have a heart to heart with a stranger and the next, you could revert back to being awkward teens all over again. It was in that silence that I realized that she was like me. She was lonely. No one but her father knew of her power. She had no one to confide in, no one to tell her that everything would turn out alright. Like me, she was a leaf fluttering through the storm that was the supernatural world.

"So… you'll join a devil's peerage one day…" she said. Despite our little heart to heart, I could tell she was a bit cautious of the idea. To be fair, that was entirely understandable. They wouldn't be devils if they had the reputation of angels after all. "Be careful," she settled for saying.

I nodded. "I will. What will you do? Your father will get better in a day or two. I mean, it's not like his leg will grow back, my magic isn't good enough for that, but he should be fine as far as daily life goes."

"I… I wish I could travel the world like you, but you're wrong. This isn't Rome with high end technology to help him."

"Maybe one day, I can come back. I'd like to regrow your father's leg properly when I'm stronger."

"Yeah… one day…"

X

Anyway, that's how I ended up meeting Amira, my future Queen. Odd, I know, I met the Queen of my peerage before I met the King who would turn me. And who is this King? I hinted at it already. There's only one devil around who is insane enough, and strong enough, to go around dressed like a Sailor Moon knockoff… I first met the lovably eccentric devil-whale in Romania.

I was continuing my routine. Travel from one rural town to the next, heal people for food and lodging, then train some magic on the road. It had been three years since I left the church and two years since I left Amira in that dusty old village. I still wondered about her. I wondered if she even remembered me, much less my promise to heal her father. I wondered if she ever told her village about her heritage, or if she ever chose to take up the sword and fight for her people.

Being in Romania had its fair share of risks, so I couldn't train my skills for long. The two vampire clans weren't exactly known for their friendliness towards outsiders and I wasn't sure how they'd react to a human that was aware of the supernatural. Even if I could prove invaluable with Twilight Healing, my bet was that they'd eat me first and ask questions later. Or, if the Tepes found me, they would likely force Valerie into using the Sephiroth Graal, transplant the Twilight Healing into someone else, _then_ eat me. Either way, not good odds.

Over the two years, I did manage to pick up some tricks. I had my Sonic Roar, a high pitched blast of sound I could use like a projectile, and Null Space, to mute sounds and make me harder to track. As a matter of necessity, I developed Voice Over, a simple technique that masked my voice into someone else's. Why was it necessary? Well, when I left the Middle East, I could no longer use the sand in my eyes as a legitimate excuse to wear a scarf over my face so it became much harder to receive any decent work. I was always the kid playing at being a doctor, a homeless orphan looking to scam some scraps. Then, I remembered a psychological study I read as a premed student in my past life. People have a very hard time discerning the age of those of different races. European people look younger than they actually are to Asian and African peoples. In reverse, Asians look younger to Europeans and so on. Basically, that meant my voice would carry a lot of weight. If a fifteen or sixteen year old spoke with the scratchy, deep voice of a man who had been traveling for years, it suddenly became possible for that teen to pass himself off as someone who looked young. It wasn't foolproof; I was still met with skepticism much of the time, but it was enough to entice one or two patients and those one or two would soon verify my ability.

I also created Vertigo, just in case I would have to take down many non-supernatural opponents at once. I would prefer to avoid killing of course. Despite my exorcist training, I have yet to take a life and I intended to keep it that way. Vertigo was basically a super low pitch vibration that resonated with the otoliths, parts of the inner ear responsible for sensing gravity, direction, and movement. It was too low to hear, but the vibration would displace the parts of the human body responsible for balance, causing everyone around me to suddenly develop intense nausea. It's helped multiple times in the past when I needed to make a quick getaway.

I was currently holed up in a small town in Romania. After I healed the little girl's sprained ankle, I packed up the small first aid kit I had gathered over the years and thanked the father for putting me up for a night. Their house wasn't much, but just having a couch to sleep on was already more than I got most of the time.

I awoke in the middle of the night to a feeling of intense dread. I stood on shaky limbs as I wiped the cold sweat from my brow. Once, in the Vatican, Griselda Quarta had visited to give us acolytes a taste of true combat. Or rather, a taste of fear and a lesson in much needed humility. She unleashed all of her holy power, her years of experience as an exorcist, onto us acolytes in one focused blast of killing intent. Needless to say, not one of us tasted true combat. I'm not ashamed to say I passed out in my own piss and vomit that day without her even having to lift a single finger. I wasn't the only one, my entire generation couldn't look at the woman for a week without breaking out into cold sweat. I was later told that some of the younger ones' hearts actually stopped beating for a few moments. I now have so much respect for Xenovia, simply surviving that woman's "parenting" has got to make her eligible for sainthood or something. My point is, once you encounter true killing intent, you never forget it and this, the sense of dread and malice filling the village, was definitely killing intent. To be fair, it was nothing compared to Griselda, Queen of Motherfucking Hearts, Quarta's, but it was enough to shock me from my sleep.

The energy felt wrong though. Griselda, as much power as she used back then, had no true desire to do us harm, not that it made a damn difference, but the air filling the village just dripped with ill intent. The magic in the air was also of an entirely different variety. While Griselda wielded holy power with all the skill that Michelangelo used to wield his brush, the weight that almost brought me to my knees was much more primal. It was _dark_. The edges of my vision were tinged in black. The shadows seemed a little bit longer, a little bit deeper. And soon enough, I found out why.

The window on the far side of the living room burst open, sending a shower of jagged glass everywhere. In the other room, I could see the patriarch of the house pull a hunting rifle he had stashed under his bed while his wife shielded their daughter. The intruder was most definitely a supernatural being, that much was obvious from his blood red eyes. He gave us a wicked grin and for a moment, I saw a flash of elongated ivory that glinted off the moonlight.

'Vampire, and male… Tepes Faction?' My exorcist training kicked in and I pulled the light gun I nicked from the Vatican as quickly as I could. The vampire clearly wasn't expecting that, but even so, the bullet of holy light just barely grazed his ear. "Go! I shouted towards the family I had been staying with. "Get out of here!"

There was no showboating or gloating about the superiority of his species. I saw it in his eyes then; just as a butcher does not gloat about the amazing cut of steak he will have to the cow, the vampire felt no need to talk to us. He lunged with a hungry snarl. It was all I could do to impose myself between him and the family. The father tried to aim around me, but the difference between taking potshots at pheasants and taking aim in live combat shone through. The vampire slapped me aside with laughable ease before reaching out and breaking the rifle in half with a causal flick of his wrist.

I managed to black his backhand, but I could hear the subtle cracks of fractured bones as I was sent sailing to the side. Gritting through the pain, I began to hum a simple tune, Lugia's melody from the old Pokemon movie, as I willed Twilight Healing to work. The familiar emerald light enveloped me, drawing the vampire's attention and saving the father's life, if only for the moment. I tried my best to get another holy bullet off, but trying to aim while keeping my Sacred Gear active turned out to be a horrible idea. There really was no way to win there. Trying to aim with fractured arms and only half-assed exorcist training would have been just as bad. My bullet went wide.

Thankfully, I finally drew his attention. He turned to me with a small hint of curiosity entering his voice. "You… what is an exorcist doing in Tepes territory? And one with a Sacred Gear too. Are you trying to start a war?"

"Nah, I'm not affiliated with the Church anymore. I kinda left, you see. If I wanted to frame them, I would have waited for you to start feeding before putting a bullet in your back." I relaxed minutely as I felt the bones in my forearms mend. This vampire wasn't particularly powerful, or it was taking me lightly, seeing how it hadn't begun using blood or shadow magics yet. I still had a chance so long as I kept it talking.

"Then what? Are you some kind of rogue priest? You know the women and children taste better. I was willing to leave you be so long as there were other prey around. Don't tell me you're just altruistic. Is God's lost little mutt growing a conscience?" he taunted.

I was terrified. This would be the first real fight I've ever been in and it was clear who had the upper hand. "'I will do no harm or injustice to them,'" I cited the most quoted line of the Hippocratic Oath. It was more of a whisper, a mantra to give myself the courage I didn't feel. "'In purity and according to divine law will I carry out my life and my art.' I am a doctor and a doctor protects his patients. That little girl iS MY PATIENT!" The words that began as a whisper became a battle cry that turned into a Sonic Roar. My Roar was considerably wider than a bullet and sent the vampire reeling out of the house. I quickly ran between the vampire and the family. "Go, get out of here." I said again, "I don't think I can beat him. You need to leave."

"Mami, mi-e frică," I heard behind me. I didn't speak Romanian, but I knew enough to guess.

I turned around and smiled at her with a confidence I knew was born more of bravado than any actual competence. "It'll be alr-"

Whatever I was going to say was cut off by a dagger-like hand piercing my chest. "You could have lived," the vampire whispered, "but you just had to play the hero."

My vision began to fade. People always describe knife wounds to be searing pains on the body, trails of fire marked by the passage of steel. No, pain is only useful so long as the body has the possibility to avoid it and sometimes, when there's no chance, the brain just shuts it off. The hand in my chest felt cold. The cold then spread throughout my chest cavity, bringing with it a dull ache that my brain failed to properly register. What I did register was the shocked look on that little girl's face before her mother covered her eyes, hoping to shield her from the trauma in the brief moment before their inevitable deaths. 'I failed,' I thought.

Before I completely left my senses, I heard the melodic voice of a certain magical girl, "... Cross Trigger!"

 **Author's Note**

 **If you're wondering, the Egyptian national army orchestra is something of an international joke. When a dignitary makes a state visit, they play that country's national anthem in "honor" of that country. Except, they have butchered every single one and it's actually really funny. Look it up.**

 **Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār is something like the Middle Eastern Excalibur. Read up on the legend; it's pretty interesting.**

 **Leviathan is Hebrew. It literally translates to "big fish" and depending on which theologist you ask, it's been said to refer to a large whale or a sea serpent. Or, it could be a general term for large sea creatures. Either way, Serafall's title literally translates to "Serafall the Big FIsh, King of Devils and Chief of Foreign Affairs."**

 **I really didn't expect this to get so long, but I doubt many of you would complain. I'm not really used to writing in the first person so it came out a bit like stream of consciousness. The chapter begins with Luca in Romania, goes through what he did to get there, then skips back to Romania. Tell me what you thought of it. If you have any advice on how to make skips like that clearer, please let me know.**

 **As always, constructive feedback is appreciated.**

 **Pat reon Sorre**


	3. Chapter 3

**Preface**

 **Hello everyone, Sorre here. I swore on pat reon and my profile that I would update at least one of my stories (or start a new one) every two weeks. This week, I'm going to update Gaming Guardian and Resounding Healer. Next week, I think I'll update On My Wings. Anyway, hope you're all well.**

 **If you feel I haven't answered your reviews, it's because I want you to read the story and wait in anticipation for what comes next. This chapter is Luca's debut as a devil and will set the tone for what it means to be a member of Serafall's peerage.**

 **Chapter 3: Death x Dhampir**

I… didn't expect to open my eyes ever again. My first thought was that I had once again been reincarnated into another world. 'I wonder which world I ended up in this time? Please don't say Highschool of the Dead,' I pleaded in my head. The last thing I needed was to join a zombie apocalypse with no powers or advantages to help me survive.

"You're awake," came a feminine voice that rang with the naive cheer of youth. Suddenly, my vision was filled with glossy black hair and large, violet eyes that seemed to suck me in.

"Uh… hi?" I managed. Pathetic, I know, but I wasn't expecting to wake up, nevermind wake up to a face that could make angels fall from lust. As it turned out, yes, Serafall _has_ made angels fall from lust. It was one of the many _many_ events that sparked her and Gabriel's rivalry.

She leaned back and I saw her trademark pink outfit. Her hair was done in two pigtails and she was twirling a matching wand. Suddenly, everything made sense. This was my life now. I was brought back to life by a magical girl with enough power to restart the Ice Age. "Hello, my adorable new servant~" she sang.

"Serafall Leviathan, I presume?"

"Yup! Magical Girl Levia-tan arrived to save the day~" She did a little twirl and posed, her wand in the air and shot me a wink. No, the anime was not exaggerating. If anything, there were more stars and rainbows floating around her than depicted back in my old life. "You were bleeding out so I froze the meanie and rescued you~"

Yes, as it turned out, she sang almost everything. Trying to having a normal conversation with her was like trying to convince Rias to give up anime. It just wasn't happening. Half of my job as a member of her peerage would be to translate her words into more professional, tactful, discourse for her foreign affairs press releases. No, it would not be fun. I would ask myself in the future just who thought it would be a good idea to make her the chief diplomat of the Underworld… then, I would imagine just how bad things could have been if she were to head Internal Affairs or the Army, never mind Research and Development.

"Let me get this straight. You found me," I said. She nodded with an eager smile. "I was dying." Another nod. "You froze the vampire and revived me. I'm guessing you used your Evil Piece?" Two nods and a shake.

"Nope, I used two Evil Pieces," she chirped. "You are now my only Bishop!"

It took a minute for me to process that. "Why?" It was a fair question; someone like Serafall had enormous power, enough power to rival some gods. She shouldn't have needed more than a single pawn for the likes of me. Twilight Healing was good, but even Rias only needed a single bishop piece for Asia.

"Well, a maou's peerage needs to be super awesome and I figured you could use the power boost," she said in a rare moment of clarity. "Besides, I am the Maou of Foreign Affairs. That means you're going to be a diplomat so you need enough pieces to convince other factions that your word carries my weight. If I only used a pawn, everyone would disregard you and treat you like a butler since you're not very strong."

"I… see…" That was much more insight than I expected her to have. She must have seen the awe in my face because she shot me an adorable pout.

"Mou! You thought something mean about me!"

"N-No, I didn't," I lied.

"Yes you did!" She saw through it quite easily. Am I really that easy or is she just better than people give her credit for?

I frantically looked around for something to change the topic. Come to think of it, the room we were in was quite elegant, luxurious even. The bed was comfortable and probably cost more money than I've ever had in my life. Both lives. "Where are we anyway?"

For a moment, she scrunched up her nose in distaste. "We are at the headquarters of the Tepes Faction. Now, Bishop-tan, you're going to stay silent and let me do the talking."

"Luca," I said, "my name is Luca Rossi."

"Lu-tan then."

She nodded resolutely and pulled me to my feet with more strength than any girl her size should have. "Let me do the talking," she repeated. Seeing my nod, she smiled in satisfaction and led me to another room.

The room was a sitting room of sorts with a central table. As cliche as it sounded, a glass of red liquid, blood, I later found out, was set out for the obviously important man on the far side of the table. On our side, two glasses of water. The man who was Serafall's opposite was tall. He was the exact definition of a handsome aristocrat and stared at me with obvious distaste. He stood to acknowledge her. "Please have a seat, Maou Serafall. It seems we must renegotiate some terms."

Serafall… did a full one-eighty. She went from chipper to deadly serious in a flash. She took a seat and motioned for me to join her on her left. It was surreal, seeing a magical girl cosplayer hold herself with all the decorum and grace of a seasoned politician. "Yes, Lord Tepes, we must."

From that brief exchange, I gathered that Serafall had stumbled upon me, likely by accident, while she was negotiating with the Tepes Faction. That… the sheer amount of luck I would require to not only be saved at my deathbed, but also to be resurrected by the Leviathan of all people, boggled my mind. Clearly, whatever force that brought me here didn't want me dying so soon.

Lord Tepes took a sip of blood and cleared his throat before speaking. "Mere hours after signing a non-aggression pact, you violated this pact by attacking one of my men during a scheduled hunt. Please, explain yourself."

In that moment, I saw a glimpse of the warrior queen behind the magical girl persona. Here, she was not the loving older sister that doted on young Sona, she was the legendary devil who survived the Great War and personally killed the previous Leviathan. She could have been made entirely of ice and I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. "I did no such thing, Lord Tepes," she said crisply. "Please do not insinuate that us devils would violate an agreement so soon after it was signed."

'But you _would_ violate an agreement eventually?' I wondered but didn't dare voice my thoughts out loud.

"But that is exactly what happened," he countered cooly. "Instead of moving directly to the Underworld, you chose to intervene in a hunt. The human you resurrected is proof of that."

"I did not permanently harm your subordinate. We both know that he is alive and well."

"Yes, but it still stands that you were where you should not have been. So why did the vaunted Leviathan step in to save the life of some mere mortal?"

She loosed a quiet sigh. No matter how great her negotiation skills, there was no way to deny that she had been there. I was sitting right next to her after all. "I do not deny that I stretched the wording of the pact to its utmost limits," Lord Tepes scoffed derisively, "but I feel that my new servant's continued survival would be beneficial for both our factions."

At that, one of his delicate eyebrows rose. "Oh? Do tell," he said. His tone made it clear that he doubted the possibility. "What about this one could entrance you so? I sense nothing but the power of a middling devil."

"At first, I was drawn to the activation of a Sacred Gear. Then, when I observed for a while longer, I found that he possessed Twilight Healing. As you know, my family, House Sitri, possesses a talent for healing and I wished to cultivate that."

"A maou is to remain neutral if I recall," he observed.

"Yes, but only in the potiticing between the Pillars. If an opportunity to better the Underworld in any small way presents itself, it is my duty to take it," she replied diplomatically.

'Wait, so if I didn't have Twilight Healing, you would have left me to die?' I wanted to cut in. A warning glance from her shut me up.

"That's all well and good, but this does not change the fact that you assaulted one of my subordinates. You also have yet to inform me how this could prove beneficial for me and mine."

This time, Serafall fell silent. It was obvious that any potential I had would need to be cultivated in the Underworld, away from the Tepes Faction. "I will personally ensure that any member of the Tepes Faction seeking medical assistance be welcomed within Sitri territory to start."

"No, we are quite capable of healing our own here. We do specialize in blood magic after all. It would be strange if we did not know the more beneficial aspects of our craft." This time, Lord Tepes felt no need to hide his grin.

After another tense moment staring at one another, she sighed. "What do you want," she said finally.

The leader of one half of the vampire people slid over a piece of parchment he had clearly prepared beforehand. Looking over her shoulder, I could see that he wanted three things: forfeiture of control of the location known as the Familiar Forest to the Tepes Faction, lowered price of Phenex Tears, and the sale of numerous magical texts that I gathered were extremely rare and expensive. "I am not an unreasonable man," he began, "choose two of these possible reparations and we can begin negotiations from there."

"None of these are acceptable," she bit out. "The Familiar Forest houses Dragon Queen Tiamat. We have no control over her actions and she will most certainly react negatively to what she views as intrusion into her territory. The Phenex Tears are the exclusive products of the Phenex House and their trade cannot be dictated by the Yondai Maou. Finally, the sale of these books would in no way match my own limited transgression. Your subordinate is alive and well and I only resurrected a human after his death was clear, removing him from your jurisdiction."

"And yet, it is clear that the one who has transgressed is you, Leviathan. Are you trying to start a war? Or perhaps, will you forfeit the life of your servant? I suppose that would be the most equivalent exchange," he mused.

Both parties fell into an uncomfortable silence. Even I could tell that what he was asking for would be too much. For the supernatural world, magic was everything. Imagination and knowledge was the key to magic. Entire magical cabals and noble houses had fallen from prestige due to the loss of a single grimoire. My life, as loathe as I am to admit it, was not worth that and Serafall, no matter how benign a devil, was still a devil. If I did nothing, she would be forced to give me up.

"Wait," I spoke, ignoring her heated glare, "in the end, this comes down to what I can do for the Tepes Faction, right?"

"You allow your servants to speak?" he addressed Serafall as though I didn't even exist.

"No, he will be disciplined in the future," she promised. The look she sent me sent chills down my back.

Nonetheless, seeing how I'd be catching hell from her anyway, I pressed forward. "Leviathan-sama," I began, using the Japanese honorific to match her tastes, "this discussion is about the reparations to be made to the Tepes Faction. As I am at the center of the disagreement, I feel that I must offer what I can."

Vladimir Tepes looked one part amused and one part derisive. Eventually, he settled for amused, humoring me like he might a child or a man on death row, which, coincidentally, was exactly what I was. "Oh? You think you can offer something that your master cannot? Let's hear it then, boy. If you cannot entice me, you will compensate my time with your life."

I gulped. This was not a man used to making baseless threats. This was not a man at all, but a monster. 'It's make or break,' I thought. "You have a daughter."

He froze. Then, the room became stifling as his power filled every nook and cranny. The sheer intensity of the glare he leveled at me made the vampire in the village look like a toddler. "How do you know that, boy?"

"I was initially raised as an exorcist by the Vatican. I'm sure you saw the gun. I left at the age of thirteen and wandered the world as a doctor, using Twilight Healing and my own knowledge to get by. I know better than to enter a faction's territory without studying up on the ruling family," I said.

"Go on…"

"You have a daughter named Valerie. She is a dhampir."

He stared at me for a minute, but the pressure abated. "How did you know of this?"

"I don't believe it is custom to offer the source of my information in negotiation," I deflected. "My point is this: I am aware that she is afflicted with a malady of the mind. You cannot heal her. No amount of skill with blood magic can heal her because the wound is not physical in nature. You cannot afford to appear weak to your subordinates so you will not hire an outside healer, nor are such healers inexpensive. After all, she is a dhampir, a half breed; to use any but the most basic resources on her would be seen as a waste to your subordinates. There is no reason for you to care about a waste of royal blood." I tried to force as much vitriol as I could into those words. Sure enough, Lord Tepes' eyes narrowed in warning.

"Tread carefully, mortal. I may kill you regardless of any reparations I might gain," he hissed.

"But, you do care, don't you?" I asked rhetorically. "If you didn't care about Valerie, you wouldn't be reacting this way. Here is my proposal. Give her to me; I can help her. I can provide the constant healing necessary to keep her mind stable. And eventually, when I grow powerful enough, I may even be able to rid her of her affliction altogether. This is your only chance to help her."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then I suppose you will have my head," I finished, "and Valerie will live in a purist, misogynistic society until she wastes away. You will watch your daughter's mind erode away to nothing, incapable of asking for help for fear of your own subordinates. You will destroy any goodwill between devils and your faction. You can have my head and satisfy your petty pride, or you can give your daughter a life worth living."

I can honestly say that this is the only time I had ever seen Serafall utterly speechless. It would remain one of the proudest moments of my life, up until the death of Trihexa. For the longest time, no one spoke. A maid came in, refilled our glasses, and scurried away in fright, unable to handle the tense atmosphere.

It started as a low chuckle, then a full bellied laugh. Vladimir Tepes was _laughing_. "You… I see, perhaps your eyes are sharper than I first suspected, Leviathan. Your servant has not been a devil for a day and he has already won my contract." He then fixed me with a glare promising untold agony. "Let it be as you say. You will leave my territory. You will take my daughter with you. From this point on, you will forever be banned from our halls. Your very presence shall warrant death. Go, and if I find that you have caused her harm in any way, the Yondai Maou will not stop me from rending you limb from limb.

X

We were seated in a train car. Fun fact, the magical train to the Underworld wasn't just a Gremory thing. Apparently, Serafall had read Harry Potter once and asked Ajuka Beelzebub if they could have one too. A month later, a transdimensional railway was formed with a stop in each major devil province. There were also a handful of stops that led out into the human world. As soon as we were evicted from the Tepes territory, Serafall dragged us to the nearest stop and kicked everyone off the train in the name of diplomatic mission. No one dared to contradict her. On a side note, the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve would see an unprecedented amount of snow, completely unrelated to a certain agitated magical girl.

The car itself was luxurious, with seats softer than anything I'd ever felt before and enough leg room for a full sized tiger to curl up in, but I didn't get to enjoy any of it. Serafall was staring at me with a mix of concern, fury, and respect. I didn't know she had such a wide range of emotions applicable to anything not named "So-tan."

"Talk," she ordered.

"Can this wait until I try to see what's wrong with her?" I motioned to Valerie. She was, according to Vladimir, nineteen years old, three years older than myself. She was a beautiful young girl with crimson eyes and pale blonde hair. She had a cute button nose and a face that could make Helen of Troy jealous. Or, it would have had she not been drooling onto my shoulder. She stared at me as I wiped off her drool with a napkin from the amenities provided.

Serafall nodded and I held the dhampir's face in my hands. She squirmed a bit, her eyes empty of recognition, seeing but not seeing. She was effectively a mental patient. Before we left, Vladimir Tepes had seen fit to gift me a ring, a communicator, he said. He would expect regular reports on her health. In the Tepes Faction, he would sell her absence as getting rid of a troublesome burden that was used to buy favorable negotiating terms from the devils while monitoring his daughter's progress. Slowly, I began to sing, my voice accompanying the emerald warmth that covered the cabin. I was a premed student, but I was no psychologist. I had no idea what was wrong with her, not really. I certainly didn't know how the absence of one third of your Sacred Gear could affect your soul. All I knew was that Valerie's mind was curable, and even then only from the light novels. Nonetheless, each word I sang, I infused a little prayer of my own, not to any deity, but to whoever and whatever had given me these powers.

Tears on a six string  
Another angel gone leavin' you all alone  
Dealin' with your demons  
I know you layin' there wonderin'  
If your prayers ever make it through the ceilin' too  
Yeah I know what you goin' through

When every word held a fragment of my wish for her to be well, I started to see results. Her eyes cleared. She sat up a little straighter, her mind once more in control of her body. With each line of my song came a promise, to do no harm, to heal and protect. Sure, I was never a fully licensed doctor, but the dream of healing others had carried over from my past life.

If I could write the perfect song  
We could let the right out of all the wrongs  
Would you close your eyes, would you let it in?  
Would you light a candle against the wind?  
If I could sing the perfect words  
And change the world from hurt to hurt  
We're all feelin' stop the bleedin'  
You're back to believin'  
Love is the answer and music is healin'

By the time I finished, I heard a gentle clap across from me. Serafall wiped away a tear. I turned to look at my patient. The sheer joy in her eyes would remain one of my fondest memories.

"That was beautiful, Lu-tan," Serafall said. "You're still in a lot of trouble, mister!" You have no idea how glad I was to hear her scolding tone. The serious Serafall, the cold Serafall that could give a phoenix frostbite with a single look was terrifying. I can earnestly say that this woman scares me even more than Griselda Quarta. In the blink of an eye, her face was an inch from my own. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that was? You were mouthing off to the leader of a faction! You could have started a war! You could have died!" she wailed.

I had a thousand things I could have said to her. I was still trying to decide whether it'd be okay to tell her about my transmigrated soul. But in that moment, I could do nothing but bring her in for a hug. She was genuinely worried about me. For all the ice in her persona earlier, she honestly cared for me.

Next to us, Valerie tilted her head to the side in confusion. She was aware of her surroundings, but had the emotional depth of a child or a puppy. "I'm sorry, Leviathan-sama," I murmured into her hair.

"Sera-tan," she said, "My family calls me Sera-tan."

I chuckled, "I seriously doubt that your sister calls you that."

"She should," came the muffled reply.

"Maybe."

"You're still going to be punished."

I rubbed her head, running my hands through her silky locks. "Why? Everything turned out well, right?"

"You disobeyed your king," she sniffed, "and you scared me." Sighing, I acquiesced. It'd be better to let her take out her frustrations in whatever way she saw fit than to argue. Otherwise, she might actually force me into a magical girl uniform. "And I still want to know how you knew about Val-tan over here."

"I… When I was younger, I was almost kidnapped by a member of the Carmilla Faction," I said. "When the Church exorcists saved me, they tortured her into telling them why they wanted me. If she wanted a snack, I would have already been dead after all. She said that she wanted my Twilight Healing to bargain with Vladimir Tepes." I… seriously doubt she bought it, but thankfully, she was willing to let me have my secrets.

"How long have you had your Sacred Gear active?"

"Since as long as I can remember," I admitted. Reasonably speaking, I wasn't lying per se. I was in the car accident that activated my Sacred Gear when I was two years old.

"Impossible," she said flatly.

"I swear I'm not lying. My parents died in a car crash and I only survived because I instinctively accessed Twilight Healing to heal my skull after it cracked open like an egg." She stared into my eyes and nodded, seemingly satisfied with my explanation. 'I'm sorry,' I thought, 'I promise I'll tell you the truth someday.'

Any further conversation was cut off by Valerie's growling stomach. Thank Sirzechs' red ass for that. We had a small meal on the train. That meal of rice and salisbury steak in rich, brown gravy was easily the best meal I'd ever had, but the guilt of lying to my King made me grimace with each bite. If this is the kind of luxury a maou's peerage usually got to experience, I definitely didn't regret becoming a devil. We finished eating, but Valerie seemed somewhat dissatisfied. She kept glancing at me and I couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"Why is she staring at me like that?" I asked.

Serafall giggled, her voice ringing like the clearest chimes. "Lu-tan~ You said you'd take care of her~" she sang. "She's a vampire~"

"Ah, fuck," I groaned. I had just enough time to keep her from lunging for my throat. If it weren't for my new devil physiology, I doubt I would have been strong enough to stop her. As it was, I had one hand on her forehead and another on her shoulder, keeping her pearly whites from my neck. "A little help would be nice, Sera-tan."

"Nope, you found her. You feed her."

"She's not a pet."

"She's your patient and a doctor must provide for his patients," she said resolutely.

She… wasn't wrong… unfortunately. Sighing, I thanked the powers that be for Twilight Healing and willingly shoved my finger in her mouth. I winced at the prickling against her incisor. Slowly but surely, Valerie calmed down, her thirst for blood sated.

"You know, that looks rather naughty," Serafall teased. She had somehow acquired a camera and snapped a picture of me sitting awkwardly while Valerie happily sucked on my finger.

"Why do you need that? Kindly relinquish the camera," I growled.

"Nope~ This is blackmail~"

"You're a devil."

"I know~"

X

Her "punishment" was threefold. Thankfully, dressing as a magical girl wasn't one of them. No, the first was me recording the opening music of her Magical Girl Levia-tan TV show. It was… an interesting experience. She wanted something bubbly but serious so I pulled one of my favorite songs from the old world: Amanda Lee's take on Brave Shine from Fate/Stay Night. Apparently, the song was well received, especially by the teenage audience. Yes, Serafall's show as a teenage demographic… I'm not sure how that makes me feel about the devil youth as a whole…

The second was me being placed on a semi-permanent emergency call status at the Sitri territory's main hospital. This, I wasn't too broken up about. I was planning on asking about working there anyway and wow. I may have had some training in my past life, but holy shit were these guys good. I spent most of my shift pouring as much magic as I could into songs. Then, when I felt like I couldn't heal a papercut, I would be someone's gofer, following a doctor around with this or that task until I felt like I'd collapse. I even got to sit in on several surgeries after they made sure I knew which instrument was what.

Finally, although she swore this wasn't a punishment, I was counting it, she would drag me off into her "super milky magical training session." There are no words in the Italian, English, Arabic, or any other language to describe the sheer terror that entailed...

For the following six months, my days were filled with frantic shifts at the hospital, brutal magic training, close combat training with Behemoth, and watching over Valerie. I did get to meet the other members of the Leviathan's peerage though.

Behemoth and Aziz were the two, four piece Pawns of Leviathan. Behemoth was a massive beast that looked vaguely like a wooly mammoth, if a wooly mammoth had six tusks and four pairs of devil wings. He was remarkably intelligent, as befitting a legendary beast that survived since the time of the Old Testament, and could put most rooks not named Surtr the Second to shame in terms of pure strength. Why wasn't he made a rook? Easy, do you have any idea how terrifying a forty-eight ton flying elephant is when he's promoted to knighthood? Something that heavy should not be able to break the sound barrier…

Aziz was, as Hebrew mythology would suggest, a giant bird reminiscent of a golden eagle. He was as powerful as Behemoth, albeit not as physically imposing. He was only about four times the average human height, with a wingspan to match, but made up for the comparable lack of size by sheer magical power. His control over wind was unmatched, even by Ruval Phenex. It was from him that I developed my sensory skill, Pulse Validation. As the name implied, it allowed me to use my magic to improve my hearing to the extreme. With a bit of wind magic, I could mimic a bat's sonar. Even better, I could go as far as hearing someone's heartbeat, hence the name.

Much of my combat practice with them involved learning to multitask. It was one part dodging practice, one part singing, and one part maintaining my Sacred Gear. All the while, Valerie would sit on the sidelines, cheering on her big brother. When Valerie did get involved, we took things much more slowly. We practiced basic martial arts forms and learned magic theory. I had a fun time hearing about how she had to reconcile vampiric shadow and blood magic with the devils' imagination based magic system.

And yeah, Val started to call me "big brother," or "onii-chan." Boy that took some getting used to. Valerie was older than me by a good three years, but due to losing a third of her Sacred Gear to Rizevim, may he rot up Samael's ass, she had the mental capability of someone much younger. Even with daily doses of Twilight Healing, I couldn't get her to act any older than about thirteen or so, making me both her big brother figure and her walking blood bank.

Laugh all you want, but a near twenty year old woman calling you "onii-chan" and snuggling into your lap while suckling your finger for blood is not cute or sexy. It's just plain awkward. I'm pretty sure that even were I not Serafall's Bishop, she'd have enough blackmail pictures on me to make me her little bitch for the next four centuries. I can't wait until I find a way to age her mind back to normal levels...

Six months after our arrival to the Underworld, Serafall met me as I came out of the shower after a day of training. "LLLuuu-tttaann~~~" came the battle cry of the overly affectionate magical girl.

'Hello, floor, my old friend,' I thought drily as I was tackled to the ground. "Hey there, Sera-tan," I said easily from my place on the floor. "Mind getting off? The floor is kinda cold." I rubbed her hair as she pressed herself into my chest. If I didn't know any better, I would have expected her to start purring at any moment.

"Ehee," It's been so long since I've seen you~"

"You saw me last Monday," I deadpanned. As it turned out, Serafall wasn't quite as lazy or frivolous as she was depicted to be. She was quite busy going from faction to faction, ensuring that there wouldn't be a war anytime soon. Or, barring that, that there wouldn't be a war that would catch the Underworld off guard. Of course, much of her free time was spent recording her TV show and doting on her "So-tan."

"Mou, that's still too long!"

"Okay, yeah, yeah, I missed you too." I got up while holding her in my arms. I wasn't much taller than her, but running from Behemoth tended to be good for the body. I wasn't going to be Sairaorg levels of ripped anytime soon, but as far as most bishops went, I was pretty fit. "So what brings you here?"

"Well, you're going to start training now! Isn't that exciting?" She yelled in my face.

This girl… really didn't have a off button. "Shhh… pipe down a bit. I think you're excited enough for both of us. Besides, haven't I already been training?"

"Yeah, but you need to learn to go BAM and WHAM and make all the baddies go away!" she cheered with exaggerated karate motions.

It took a moment for me to translate "Sera-Speak" into regular Italian, but I managed. "You think I should have more offensive options than my Sonic Roar."

She nodded vigorously. "Yup, and so your darling King came to give you the most awesomest present ever~~" She handed me a boxed present. The wrapping paper depicted a miniature, chibified version of Serafall and another girl with short, dark hair and glasses that could only have been Sona. Chibi-Serafall was hugging the life out of chibi-Sona. Somehow, even in a cartoon, I got the sense that chibi-Sona was only a second away from throttling her sister.

"Thanks… is that supposed to be you and Sona?"

She stood and looked down at me triumphantly. "Mmhm! I got So-Tan to agree to let me market this!"

"I… I'm not sure what to say… How did you get her to agree?" I mumbled.

"So-tan made me remove the cameras in her room," she said cheerfully. From her expression, one might imagine she was talking about the weather, not criminal levels of overbearance.

"Is this exploitation of a minor?"

"No! It's love~~"

I sighed and decided not to question it. In the end, Serafall's antics just weren't my problem. I felt a bit of pity for Sona, but couldn't find it in myself to risk my King's hyperactive affections being redirected towards me. I got enough of that from Valerie… I went with the only route I could see, "Thank you for the gift, Sera-tan," I said.

We walked into the living room of my suite in her palace. When I first arrived, I was flabbergasted at the sheer opulence of her residence. Sure, she was the Leviathan, making her the top .0000001% of the devil population in both wealth and influence, but it's one thing to hear about the wealth and ostentatiousness of devils and another thing entirely to see it for yourself. Case in point: Behemoth had a six story warehouse to himself. It was hollow on the inside to accommodate his massive bulk and although he did prefer to be outdoors patrolling the borders of Familiar Forest normally, the inside of the warehouse was laden with a small mountain of soft linens and silks for his occasional use. Valerie and I got our own quarters. Or rather, we got a shared suite with Valerie in one room and me in another. It wasn't the first time I'd ever had a female roommate, college tended to get rid of awkwardness between genders pretty quickly, but I didn't have a sister in my past life so I had an interesting time getting used to the large woman-child.

Valerie was on the sofa, watching a rerun of Serafall's show. I watched it with her once and I was pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn't all fan service and corny, stereotypical one liners. If I had to compare it to something, it was similar to Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha in my own world. She turned around to regard us. "Oh? Serafall-sama, I didn't notice you come in. Onii-chan is done with the shower? Is it dinner time yet?" she asked.

The Leviathan giggled. "Of course not, I used a magic circle to go to Lu-tan's room, but he wasn't there. And I told you to call me onee-tan too. If Lu-tan is your onii-chan, I'm your onee-tan!" That was another thing. Valerie wasn't very mature mentally, but her training as a faction's princess kicked in at the weirdest moments. She finally agreed, after three months of heckling, to call Serafall by name instead of "Leviathan-sama," but wouldn't compromise any further.

"I couldn't possibly be so informal with you in your own home, Serafall-sama," she replied. She turned to me with an obvious question.

"You know that I don't make the food around here." It was true. I once suggested helping the staff with the chores, but they acted like I had personally offended them. One of the younger maids almost burst into tears because she thought her work wasn't good enough for "Leviathan-sama's new family." I… stopped trying to help after that…

"Not your dinner, _mine_ ," she emphasized. I quickly flipped through the calendar on my phone and chuckled. Leave it to Valerie to never forget one of her feeding days.

"Yeah, give me a sec," I said. "Sera-tan gave me a present and I want to see what it is."

That piqued her curiosity. I placed the box on the coffee table and began to unwrap it. Inside, I found a microphone. It had a bronze handle, stained to be darker than normal to match the color of my eyes. The mesh wiring covering the mike was a more reddish bronze to match my hair. When I looked closely, I could see intricate runes zig-zagging throughout the whole thing. Those runic chains would catch the light, sending a myriad of colors every which way.

"It's beautiful," I said truthfully. "Thanks again, Sera-tan."

She gave me a dazzling smile. "You might not be thanking me soon enough, you know~" she sang. "This is your weapon. The runes will help you channel magic into the microphone. It also can change shape into whatever instrument you can think of to best suit the song you are playing and will produce accompaniment to whichever song you're thinking of. Remember, for us devils, imagination is key. Now, you can really start training and making new techniques~"

The smile she was sending my way would have made any other man swoon, but after six months of interaction with her, I knew better. That smile, as cute as it was, only made me shudder in dread.

"Oh, I also took you off your hospital shift. You'll instead be shadowing me so you can learn the ins and outs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. So half the time, you'll be training to develop your sound magic and the other half will be spent learning more about your job as a member of my peerage."

"Serafall-sama," Valerie cut in, "why is it onii-chan that needs to join Foreign Affairs? Aziz-san and Behemoth-san don't work for Foreign Affairs, right?"

"Yes and no. Behe-kun works by patrolling the border of the Familiar Forest to make sure no one hunts there illegally. Otherwise, Tia-chan might get really mad. Azi-kun helps me by watching Tannin and his dragon friends to make sure there are no problems. They don't work for Foreign Affairs directly because they're too big to handle administrative tasks and they're not very subtle so can't be sent on diplomatic missions," she explained. "Now, are you ready for your three month crash course into the art of diplomacy, lu-tan?"

"If I say no, are you going to leave me be?" I asked with a bit of hope. She said nothing and only kept smiling that infuriatingly adorable smile. "I thought not…"

 **Author's Note**

 **So… that happened…**

 **Song: Music is Healing, by Florida Georgia Line**

 **As always, constructive feedback is appreciated.**

 **Pat reon Sorre**


	4. Chapter 4

**It's Monday! That means it's time for me to release a new chapter. This week, I'm releasing both Resounding Healer and Finding My Image!**

 **If you need to reach me, PM me on this site or visit my Pat Reon under the same username. Have a great week, all.**

 **Chapter 4: Diplomacy X Discourse**

The world shook as Behemoth, the legendary monster of Hebrew mythology, let out a trumpeting roar. An elephant can hear another elephant over four kilometers away. Behemoth… let's just say there was a good reason that the wards in his special training area were so strong. Otherwise, everyone in the Leviathan territory would have long since gone deaf. When I first created Null Space, I made it as something of a cantrip, something to keep the idiotic Egyptian national orchestra and their affront to music from assaulting my sensibilities. I didn't really expect it to be useful as anything more than a gimmick, but I sure as hell was grateful I had it now.

Trees whipped and were pulled from the ground by their roots, but I stood still. Around me, the boundaries of my Null Space was clear to see, the vegetation surrounding my person in a perfect circle marked the place where all air ceased to exist. Lyric Armament, what I had chosen to call Serafall's gift, was strapped to my right arm in the form of a tuning fork. With sharpened edges, it was basically a wrist-mounted dagger. Not waiting for Behemoth to move, I shot a basic fireball straight into the earth to kick up as much dust as possible. Using the ensuing dust cloud as cover, I rushed forward, hoping that the giant elephant wouldn't be able to see me. My hopes were violently dashed when his trunk, the girth of most redwoods, slammed into me with the force of a wrecking ball.

"Guh!" I coughed out a mouthful of blood as I bounced off an already toppled log. The poor tree didn't stand a chance.

The voice of Behemoth rumbled, somewhat musical, somewhat nasal, with a bass tenor that seemed to resonate with my very bones. "An elephant can hear using the pads of our feet too, young one. I know you're coming because I can hear your footsteps, no matter how light."

'Well fuck,' I thought, 'I already tried moving through the air and a fat lot of good that read the vibrations in the air with those ridiculous ears of his.' "So how am I supposed to hit you then? No matter how I approach, you'll always know where I'm coming from."

Behemoth gave a rumbling laugh. "Indeed, catching me by surprise is a fool's errand."

Still, despite his words, the massive mammoth seemed to be in no rush. He did not take a single step, choosing to remain rooted, as still as a statue. 'He wants me to find a way,' I realized. Behemoth was that kind of teacher, the type to present a seemingly impossible task, if only to prove to his disciple that nothing is truly impossible. 'No matter what medium, as long as he has a way of hearing, he can tell where I'm going to strike. But that's a catch twenty-two. If I want to take away his hearing, I need to hit him. If I want to hit him, I need to take away his hearing. Then again, if it were truly impossible for me to land a single hit, he would not have given me this task in the first place. Slowly, my gaze turned to the tuning fork attached to my wrist. In reality, it may look like a weapon, but no musical tool would ever take the place of a sword or spear on the battlefield. Their designs and purpose were fundamentally different. This tuning fork just happened to look the most similar to a knife.

I shaped it to look like a two-pronged dagger because I wanted a tool that could send sonic vibrations directly into an opponent. Simply, there were two types of damaging sounds. Most of the time, damaging sound based attacks in pop culture took the form of sonic booms. They basically vibrated the air at such frequency that water vapor could overheat and the air would strike like a solid mass. While those techniques were impressive to look at, especially on the tail end of hypersonic aircraft, the most dangerous types of sonic attacks were actually at the complete opposite end of the spectrum: low frequency vibrations. There is a concept called resonant frequency. Every bit of matter in the universe vibrates. Sometimes, sound waves can slow down, their frequencies matching that of people and objects. Usually, such low frequencies leave people with minor headaches, but I could increase the decibels forcibly, creating a low frequency, high impact sonic wave that would shake an opponent. The idea was to stab someone, then shake them until they literally crumbled apart on an atomic level.

My problem here was that I had no way of hitting Behemoth and I wasn't good enough to resonate with an opponent's frequency at range. 'But does it have to be the opponent?' I wondered. After a while, I came up with an idea. I tossed another fireball into the earth, creating another dust cloud.

"You know what they say about insanity," Behemoth said.

I ignored the big lug and focused, humming and trying to tune the frequency of my hum to the vibration of the air around me. It's impossible to describe what that experience is like, to disappear, but I'll try. My entire body, for lack of a better word, melded, into the air. I was there physically, I could feel the dust settle on me, but at the same time, the difference between myself and the surrounding air was indistinguishable. Not to wax too poetic, but I was essentially singing a harmony to the song of the sky. God, that sounds horrible even now, but there just isn't a way for me to describe the experience. Still humming, I took flight to avoid the ground and shot forward. This time, Behemoth only noticed me when I broke through the dust, just a few feet away from him.

I stabbed his trunk with a fork. I know, it was probably a pity strike he gave me for a job well done. If he really wanted, he could have promoted to Knight and ran circles around me anyway. I'm still proud of this. How many people can say they stabbed one of the most powerful devils in the world with a fork? A tuning fork at that. As soon as I broke skin, I gave up trying to harmonize with the air in favor of trying to harmonize with Behemoth's flesh. I neither saw nor felt anything at first, but slowly, it spread like a poison, a drop of food coloring in a clear glass. Piece by piece, his trunk broke down. From the point of contact, he more or less liquified, his flesh breaking down due to the high decibel count and low frequency of my sonic blast.

"GRAAA!" he roared and my moment of triumph was as though it never happened.

Bouncing off the ground, I got to my feet on shaky knees. "How was that?"

"Impressive," he rumbled, "what did you do?" So I explained. I can't say he was enthralled, Behemoth wasn't much of a science expert, but he did seem interested. "How did you come up with the idea?"

"Let me heal you first," I said. After a quick rendition of Lugia's melody, I continued. "In the end, sound is just vibrations that your brain interprets to mean something. I figured that if everything vibrates, my personal affinity for sound magic is not just an affinity for songs like a bard, but an affinity for vibrations of all types. It was more of an experiment, really. This is the first time I've used it to disappear from echolocation techniques though. Maybe it's because I wasn't born with super hearing, but I want to see just how many different ways I can extend this."

"I approve. What will you call it?"

"I think I'll call the blending in 'White Noise' and the physical attack 'Resonant Impact.'"

Behemoth nodded. "Good, now come. Serafall told me she wanted to see you." He began wandering off back towards the manor, each step sending light tremors through the earth. When we crossed the barrier of the training ground, I felt a strange tingling through my spine. Never, never would I get used to that no matter how many times I do it.

"Hope she's not passing off paperwork again," I muttered under my breath. Serafall, bless her soul, had a bad habit of shoving the "unnecessary" stuff to me.

Over the past three months, my "internship" with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, MOFA for short, quickly evolved. From the very beginning, I was never relegated to fetching coffee or doing administrative work like handling some bigwig's schedule, the perk of being Serafall's Bishop. No one wanted me to tell her they were shoving me aside, not that I would have, but still. At first, they had me do some research on lower priority projects like visa processing for devils looking to travel to the human world. It may be weird for devils to require paperwork to travel to the human world, but with some thought, it made sense. Most of the human world was the territory of another pantheon.

For example, Kuoh, Japan belonged to the Shinto Faction. Serafall and Sirzechs had to negotiate with Yasaka to keep even that small town. The story was that following the end of the Great War, the devils needed a foothold in the human world. Initially, the Shinto Faction was happy to accomodate and allowed for roughly a third of Japan to be settled by the devil populace in exchange for massive trade benefits, the right to tax said devils, and assistance in putting down some rogue youkai. All of that goodwill evaporated faster than a puddle in Amaterasu's throne room thanks to the Nekoshou Genocide. In order to prevent all out war, the Yondai Maou were forced to make some major concessions. Ajuka designed an additional barrier protecting Takamagahara and a seal that allowed any youkai to teleport to shelter within Amaterasu's domain, removing the possibility of another such event happening. Falbium had to relinquish every military outpost in not only Japan, but most of East Asia for fear of pissing off the Jade Emperor. The Shinto Faction weren't the only group to have close relations with the Youkai. Sirzechs raised taxes in the Underworld by a whopping 12% for a decade just to make monetary reparations. Not even the Pillars were permitted to avoid those taxes. Even after all that, the small suburb town of Kuoh was the only devil outpost in East Asia and Yasaka only allowed that in the hopes of future diplomatic connection, however slim the odds.

It wasn't surprising then that devils now required a visa to travel to the human world. The visa had, and still have, several uses. One, it was to keep arrogant heirs from antagonizing other factions by forcibly drafting people into their peerage. It sent a message to other factions, that the devils were willing to play nice and respect other groups' territory. Two, it punished the Pillar houses for their previous misdeeds by restricting their access to humans with Sacred Gears. Three, it was a source of indirect tax income. The visa process was, while not prohibitively expensive, not something any middling devil would undergo lightly. Four, it helped to keep track of the more radical elements of society. It wasn't foolproof, but knowing where they went was a great help in monitoring them. In turn, they, knowing they were being watched, curbed their behavior, often without the need of force. Finally, and somewhat selfishly on Serafall and Sirzech's parts, they could "guide" Sacred Gear users and other compatible people towards their sisters. This visa process, while inane and frustrating, was important to MOFA, so I learned it first.

At the same time, Serafall or another senior diplomat would take me aside and drill me on the expected etiquette of a diplomatic elite. Diplomatic immunity, while present, was not a license to do anything I pleased and I was expected to know when and how to push the limits of my privilege. As the three months passed, I would help with more and more vital projects such as compiling dossiers on counterparts from other factions and learning about the different incentives and threats a diplomat from the Underworld could offer to another.

At any rate, by the time I finished my random thought of the day, I was inside and Val was greeting me with her usual cheerful smile. Then, her nose scrunched in distaste. "You stink," she whined, "and you're filthy."

"Good, at least that means you won't be bugging me for a drink," I said drily.

"Go take a shower so I can have a snack."

"I feel like a hippo."

"What?"

"Hippos will cover themselves in mud to prevent mosquitoes from biting."

"So I'm a little mosquito, huh? Your precious little sister is an annoying bug to you? I see how it is," she sniffed and shed crocodile tears.

I chuckled. It astonished me just how quickly her mind recovered. It's been nine months since I began singing to her three times a day, once with every meal, and she was now fully capable of living her life on her own terms. Still, she was legally my ward, being a dhampir in devil society, but more or less had free reign. When she wasn't practicing her shadow and blood magic, she was catching up on the education that being a vegetable cost her. Lately, she also took to calling up her father at least once a week to let him know she was well. If I'm being honest, I was trying to butter him up a bit. Slowly, I'd been introducing the idea of Valerie joining my eventual peerage. She would be safer, stronger, and have constant access to me, both for blood and music. I wouldn't say he was fully on board with the idea, but he at least wasn't entirely against it. Now that she was well, she had developed quite the wit. She was something of a dramatic as well, playing along with Serafall's antics whenever she was around.

Speaking of, I turned to look at both Serafall and Ajuka lounging around. It wasn't every day that one met Ajuka Beelzebub, even for someone in a maou's peerage like myself. "What can I do for you, Sera-tan? And Satan Beelzebub if I'm not mistaken," I said with a courteous bow. "Please forgive my appearance, I just arrived from a training session."

Ajuka, true to his reputation, waved off my apology. "No worries, please call me Ajuka, I'm not big on formalities unless the situation calls for it. I'm told you've become something like Serafall's assistant. My condolences," he said with a smirk.

"Mou, you're mean, Aju-tan!" the resident magical girl pouted. With a wave of her wand, the tea he was drinking turned to solid ice and the ever dignified maou blew a raspberry towards her green haired peer.

"Much appreciated, Ajuka," I said with an equal smirk. Serafall whirled to face me, a look of betrayal on her adorable face. She teased me so often that honestly, that one look made my week. I'd probably pay for it in paperwork or by being forced to hold a concert for her "Milky Spiral Grand Tour" or something, but meh. Worth.

"Jokes aside," Ajuka said, "I was the one who called for you, Luca. As you know, every high class devil has the right to an Evil Piece set. Recently, I've received reports from Behemoth and Aziz that you are now strong enough to be counted among that number." He slid over a lacquered box. When I opened it, a set of glass chess pieces greeted me. Despite their significance, they looked utterly unremarkable. The only thing that stood out was the absence of a king piece. If I remembered right, there were only about eight or so in existence. Instead, a crystal cut in the shape of a crown greeted me.

"What? I only barely landed one hit on Behemoth today, and even then because he didn't want to promote!"

"He is an ultimate class devil, perhaps even on par with Beowulf. If hitting Behemoth was our standard, even many of the Pillar lords wouldn't be considered high class."

"That's right, Lu-tan, Behe-tan is super strong too!" my king said, smiling widely. "Lu-tan has grown a lot in just nine months so Lu-tan deserves a peerage!"

I wasn't sure what to say. This wasn't the anime, well, it was, but I didn't have the "plot convenience buff of EXP grinding" given only to the main character. At the same time, I wasn't the type to look a gift horse in the mouth so once I got over my surprise, I accepted the offered set as graciously as I could. "Thank you, Satan Beelzebub, Satan Leviathan," I said, falling into a deep bow.

"Didn't I just tell you to stop that?" Ajuka said with a hint of frustrated resignation. Beside him, Serafall nodded vigorously.

"The moment seemed appropriate."

"Wow, onii-chan is finally going to become a king too?" Valerie said as she looked over my shoulder.

"Yup, Lu-tan just needs to push some magic into the crown."

"Umm, why doesn't onii-chan's set have a king piece? Is the crown some kind of substitute?"

Ajuka looked pleased, if solemn. "Yes, that's exactly what it is, little dhampir. The king piece does not reincarnate and are incompatible with other pieces so your 'brother' would never be able to have one. Instead, the king piece amplifies the wielder's abilities exponentially, sometimes at the cost of the wielder's sanity or health. It was considered too dangerous and removed from circulation. What he is holding now is a substitute. Normally, I would have new kings register at the central monument in Lilith. For whatever reason, Serafall has decided to keep his presence quiet for as long as possible, fair given Luca's relative weakness as a satan's peerage member. This crown will store a bit of Luca's magic and I will later deposit the magic stored within into the central monument under the guise of maintenance. Now, please push some of your magic into the crown."

When i did so, all the pieces seemed to synchronize, turning the vibrant blue of Serafall's sigil, then, starting with the crown, the pieces all shone a deep, burnished bronze. "Pretty," Valerie whispered.

"Not that I'm ungrateful or anything, because I'm thrilled to have a peerage, but does this mean I'm not Sera-tan's Bishop anymore?"

"You are," she pouted and stamped her feet on the floor.

"If I tried to take you away from her, she'd freeze my testicles," Ajuka said drily. "For the sake of my time and sanity, let's say you're still a part of Serafall's peerage. Also, You'll still be a part of MOFA. They've spent a decent amount of resources to train and educate you after all."

"Great, I'm kinda happy for that actually. Hooray for job security," I laughed.

Serafall looked at me with something like an apologetic smile. "It's not all good, Lu-tan. You are a part of a maou's peerage. That means that by rights, you are a noble, even if you weren't really strong enough to be called a high class devil until recently. Now that you are and have your own peerage, you'll be considered a baron, with all the duties that represents." She pulled out a map I recognized to be her territory. A part of it, a small district bordering the Familiar Forest and Behemoth's land, was outlined in red. At its center was a lake, not large, but still respectable. "This is your territory now. Think about what you would like in your manor and I'll have people build it."

"I don't -"

"Yes, you do. I know you don't really care about having a manor or palace or anything, but you are a baron now. You are expected to have a noble's land and bearing so just put up with it. Don't worry about cost because you're going to pay it off one way or another," she said with a dangerous smirk.

I sighed. There just wasn't a way to win against that girl. "Is that all?"

"Nope, now that you're a baron, people are going to expect to see you at social functions. Behe-tan and Azi-tan get a pass because they have duties abroad and they're so big, but you don't get to skip them anymore. I'll also start introducing you to other high class devils your age in preparation for the Young Devil's Gathering."

"Oh… do I have to participate in that too?"

"Yes. You could even say it's doubly important that you participate. Your success at the Gathering will be a subtle message to the old guard that Serafall, for all her… eccentricities, has an eye for talent. You can't just participate, you need to dominate because your performance reflects on her," Ajuka filled in. "To that end, try to gather a good peerage as quickly as possible." He shot a meaningful glance towards Valerie.

"Finally, Lu-tan, you will be made a senior diplomat," she shouted.

"Isn't this a bit quick to be rising through a government organization? Won't people say you're being nepotistic?"

"Yes, it is quick, but devils have always been self-interested."

"I don't get a say, do I?"

"Nope," she sang.

"And… my first assignment is…?"

"Kuoh!"

I brought my palm to my head. In the silence, that slap rang across the room. A maid poked her head in to make sure everything was alright, saw me facepalm again, and left me to my misery. It was a common enough occurrence. "You want to send me, your most inexperienced diplomat, to Japan," a thumbs up, "Japan, the home of the Shinto and Youkai factions," a nod, "the same factions whose hatred of us is only surpassed by Heaven and the Grigori?"

"Yup! You'll do great!" she cheered. No one in the room agreed with her optimism. I looked to Ajuka for help. The bastard chuckled and refused to meet my eyes, pretending to struggle with thawing out his tea.

"You wouldn't do this, not unless you had another reason," I sighed, "You want me to monitor Sona, don't you?"

"If you just so happen to receive the cold shoulder from Kyoto, you can stay in Kuoh to show that we want to talk, Lu-tan. And if you just happen to be in Kuoh, the only devil outpost in Japan, you might, if you have time, check up on So-tan for your awesome king," she said innocently.

"You know, no one in the room buys that innocent look. There's no way in hell this assignment is a coincidence."

"Aww relax, Lu-tan, I won't be sending you alone. I'll be sending a promising foreign service officer with you. You'll love her!"

Seeing how I wasn't going to talk her out of it no matter what I said, I resigned myself my fate. "If Yasaka burns me alive, I'm going to haunt you forever," I muttered, face still cradled in my palms.

Valerie, seeing my distress, patted my shoulder sympathetically. "There, there, onii-chan." She's such a good girl…

X

"No."

"Please?" I tried for what felt like the twelth time.

"No." On the other side of the line, Vladimir Tepes, the strongest vampire, set his jaws in firm denial.

"She'll be safe."

"She'll be a devil."

"She'll have a permanent source of blood."

"She'll be a devil."

"She'll have unrestricted access to healing."

"She'll be a devil."

"She'll be off limits to other scheming devils trying to recruit her."

"She'll be a devil."

"She'll catch up on her education."

"She'll be a devil."

I snapped. "Oh come on, Vladimir Tepes! Your only argument is that she'll be a devil! Whether you like it or not, Valerie is going to be exposed to devils trying to recruit her. Even if I try to protect her from it all, I can't watch her 24/7! You know this is the best option for her! Besides, being a devil isn't all bad; her magic and control will improve in leaps and bounds."

He sighed. "And what is my daughter's opinion on this matter?"

Valerie poked her head over my shoulder. "I don't mind, father. Onii-ch - Luca," she corrected herself, "has been nothing but kind to me. He has constantly looked out for my best interests and made me the person I am today. I… I want to be in his peerage."

Faced with his daughter's imploring eyes, the strongest vampire caved like a house of cards. "Fine! But if you hurt her…"

He didn't need to finish. For all the misogynistic, purist traditions of the Tepes, he did want what was best for her. I was fully willing to bet that he would start a war if I somehow hurt or abused her. "You have my word that I will protect and cherish her," I promised.

"... There is… something you should know…"

Seeing his expression, I quickly guessed what he wanted to talk about. "She has Sephiroth Graal," I said.

"How did you!"

'Because I watched softcore porn in the form of an anime in a previous life,' I thought to myself. Out loud, I said, "Oh, come on, I've been examining her for nine months straight. Who do you think I am? I think I'd notice one of the Longinus." I grew serious. "She's missing a third of it, isn't she?"

"... Yes…"

"It's the reason for her malady."

"... Yes…"

"Why? Who took it?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Are you sure you wish to know?"

"I would know the name of my enemy."

"... Rizevim Lucifer," he breathed out as though wary of even saying his name. To be fair, he had good reason to be afraid of a super devil. "One of his minions tracked her down somehow and tried to extract the Sephiroth Graal. I got there in time to stop him, but not entirely."

"Then he will pay. With the evil pieces, I will teach Val control. Hopefully, she'll be able to access it without driving herself mad."

"Then I will leave her to you."

That was the end of our conversation. Initially, I wanted to make her my Queen. She pushed the piece away, saying that she lacked the physical aspects necessary to being an all round ace. I offered her the bishop pieces next, but when I tried, I ultimately failed to turn her. In hindsight, that made sense. Issei, a regular human with the Boosted Gear dormant, required all eight pawns from Rias. Valerie's Sephiroth Graal was active, if unused. She also had prior training and a powerful bloodline.

"Are you sure you're okay with being my Pawn?" I asked as I held out the seven glowing pieces.

"Yup, I don't mind. It's just a name anyway."

I grabbed the eighth from the box and added it to the pile in her hand. "You may as well take the last one too. I don't have any intention of resurrecting someone who'd only be worth one piece."

"You shouldn't quantify people like that, onii-chan," she scolded.

"I know, but maybe, having an abundance of pieces will help you control your Sacred Gear. You were there when Sera-tan explained them."

"Yeah, I know, they're like beacons that signal to each other and the king. She said you'd eventually be able to funnel some of your power into me to make me stronger."

"Exactly, so maybe having an extra pawn will give me a bit more influence over your power. I'm hoping that I can help you suppress Sephiroth Graal when necessary."

"Okay… eight it is."

X

My first act as the new senior most diplomat in MOFA, beneath Serafall obviously, was… to take a vacation. More than one paper pusher shot me venomous glares of jealousy and hate. I did feel bad… sort of… but this was kind of important. That's why, a few days after that scintillating conversation with Vlad, I was back in the deserts of southern Turkey.

Valerie was… dying… Daywalker she may be, but she was in no way a fan of scorching heat. "Why are we out here, onii-chan," she whined as she took another swig of her water bottle.

"Because, we need to go pick up my Knight," I said.

"Who?" She asked, curious about this mystery person. "I didn't even know you knew anyone here."

"She's a friend I met while I was human. I was in the area before I moved on to Romania and met your dad."

"Oh… so she's a friend," she said, nudging my side.

I sighed. "I liked you better when you were super shy about everything." Despite my grumbling, I gave her hair a loving ruffle.

"HSSSSSS!"

I snatched my hand away from her ivory fangs. "Did you just hiss at me?"

"... No…"

"You did…"

"No… I didn't…"

"You're adorable." She flushed red. "And kinda creepy… ow!"

So, I dragged Valerie, attached to my arm and happily sucking away, into the village. Her outfit drew some scandalized looks, a white sundress and hip-hugging jeans stood out in the conservative village, but we ignored them. Soon enough, Valerie yelped as she felt cold steel impose itself between her neck and my arm.

"Kindly stop sucking my friend dry, daywalker," Amira hissed venomously. She tried to force Valerie's head away, but seeing my lack of alarm, Val just picked up my arm and dragged it along, lips still firmly attached to me.

"Hey, Amira," I waved with my free hand.

"You… have a vampire attached to your arm…"

"She's just giving me a hickey…"

"Do you seriously expect me to believe that? You know I learned to sense magic, don't you? And she practically reeks of it."

I looked at my little sister then at her. "Jealous?" I asked with a quirked eyebrow.

She threw her arms in the air. "Forget it. Come on, let's go to my house."

"Yes, lets. If you can sense Val, you can sense me. You know I'm not human anymore," I said in hushed tones. All I saw was a minute nod.

In the past few years, Amira had only grown more beautiful. Although her outfit hid her figure, she walked with the grace of an experienced swordswoman and her face was enough to turn heads wherever she went. In her home, I finally pulled my arm free of Valerie and sat down on a cushion. "To start, I am a devil. Valerie is my Pawn. I want you to be my Knight."

She crossed her arms in front of her chest and scowled. "I know you didn't forget why I couldn't leave the village, Luca. You don't even speak to me for years and now you want to talk?"

I raised my hands in front, the universal sign of surrender. "I was busy. You know how I said I wanted to find a benevolent master?"

Her tone flipped from critical to concerned on a dime. "He's not hurting you, is he?" With nary a wisp of smoke, The Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār appeared in her hand. And by Sera's glittering ass that hurt.

Val and I collectively winced, visibly leaning away from the pure holy power radiating from that sword. It wasn't called the Middle Eastern Excalibur without cause. "Please… put… that… away…" i groaned.

She dismissed it in a wave of fire. "Sorry…"

"No, I'm not trapped in some abusive relationship. And my king is a she. Her name is Serafall Leviathan, one of the four Satans."

Her mouth opened and shut like a guppy. "Your master… is the strongest devil?"

"One of them, yeah. She's actually overly affectionate if anything. Anyway, because she's the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I'm kind of forced to be in it too by default. I was busy getting trained."

"Oh…"

"So… am I forgiven?"

"Yeah… sure…" she nodded absently, still trying to process the fact that the Leviathan was my king. "But then, why are you here now? Aren't you happy?"

"I said I wanted you to be my Knight."

"And you know why I can't leave."

"Think it over," another voice said. Amira's father, looking healthier than before, walked into the room. He seemed to be taking easy strides on a wooden leg. "My leg's fine, Amira. You deserve to see the world." He turned to me. "And you, thank you. I couldn't say it before, but I heard devils speak all tongues."

"Father!"

"Actually…" I laughed… "I think I'm strong enough to regrow a leg now… probably…"

Amira whirled towards me so fast I thought she'd snap her own neck. "You can heal him?"

"Only if he wants to be healed. I'll basically cut off his stump so I have a fresh wound to work with. Then, by accelerating his natural regenerative process with magic, I should be able to make him regrow his leg. Basically, I'm trusting in his body's memory of the lost limb to provide the blueprint of sorts. Also, you'd have to explain to the neighbors how the hell that happened." I gave her a crooked grin. "What, you didn't think I'd come here without a way to help, did ya? Even if you don't join me, I want to do this. I promised I'd be back after all."

She was silent for a long while. She turned to her father. "Is… is this…"

"I'm willing to try. He's given us every reason to trust him, despite being a devil."

She nodded. "Luca… How sure of this are you?"

"Pretty sure," I said, "I spent the past nine months training, working for MOFA, and working at a devil hospital. Some of those times were in the intensive care unit. We're more durable than humans so when a devil needs the ICU, it's usually pretty bad."

She took a deep breath. "Okay, if my father wants to do this, then do it. Please heal him." She moved aside as he rolled up his pant leg and detached the wooden accessory.

Valerie leaned over and examined the injury. "Huh, I expected some huge scars or something."

"I healed the wound so there wouldn't be any bone shards or anything the last time I was here."

"Ah, that explains it. How are you going to do this?"

I wordlessly pulled a knife and motioned towards his knee. "If you have something to bite on, or maybe something to numb the pain, grab it now. I'm not really known for my bedside manners." Taking my advice, Amira's dad stuffed an old shirt into his mouth and gave me the thumbs up. "Good. I'm going to freeze your leg now." I focused on my left hand and a shining ball of icy blue aura appeared.

One does not call Serafall Leviathan master and not know any ice magic after all. I actually only learned one or two basic ice spells from her, mainly so I could use the numbing effect as an improvised anesthetic and a way to stop people from bleeding out. My patient's leg was encased in a coffin of magical ice, specially designed to sap the subject's temperature as quickly as possible without resulting in frostbite. A minute later, the ice shattered and he shivered from the cold. The muffled grunts of discomfort started as soon as I dug my knife into his leg.

"Amira, Valerie, hold him down please. Numb or not, having a knife dig into your leg isn't exactly a pleasant experience." They moved to do so, each pinning the man by one shoulder. I worked quickly, ignoring his moans of pain. With a healthy dose of devil strength, I ripped open the flawless skin in under thirty seconds. Then, I placed one hand on the wound and brought Lyric Armament, in the form of an ocarina, to my lips. Note by note, my favorite melody from my past life filled the room.

Lugia's song, the same song played to call the Guardian of the Sea to Shamouti, was one I associated with peace. It had no words, but it didn't need them to convey a sense of tranquility. It was a voiceless message to all, that everything would be alright, that the storm will stop someday, that there is someone stronger watching over you. It had far more to do with healing the mind than the body, but it was enough. Slowly but surely, his leg began to grow back. First, the bone, the foundation of the body, began to extend and renew itself. Then, his muscles, blood vessels, and sinew followed, weaving together as though a tapestry. Beneath my palm, I could feel the vessels undulate for the first time, telling me that they had connected to the heart. Finally, after what seemed like hours, unblemished skin covered the limb. It was strange to see a man with no hair on his leg, but that would fix itself in time. Finished with my work, I slumped forward.

I wasn't magically exhausted, I had dealt with far worse, both in number of patients and seriousness of their injuries, but I had never been as emotionally invested. This man, I didn't even know his name, was my friend's father. That made him more than just a nameless patient, more than a job. No, my exhaustion was neither magical nor physical. It stemmed from watching father and daughter cry shamelessly. Even Valerie was tearing up a bit.

Honestly, I felt really awkward. Yes, Amira was my friend. Yes, I was the doctor "on call," so to speak. Yes, Valerie was sharing in the moment, but none of that could diminish the sheer joy shared between father and daughter. My Pawn and I exchanged a glance; we felt kinda left out. It was a bit like watching someone in a restaurant eat his food so sensually and joyfully that you can't help but wonder if the food is drugged and end up ordering the same thing to find out. Eventually, they broke out of their hug and Amira launched herself at me.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou," she muttered into my chest. I was proud to note that over the past few years, I had grown significantly taller, about tall enough to break even with Amira, despite her being two years my senior.

'Funny what you think about in the most serious moments,' I mused as I rubbed her back.

In front of me, her father stood and tested his leg. Once he verified that he could place his full weight on the limb, he bowed low. "Thank you, Luca Rossi. I will not forget this."

"I could do with learning your name," I said drily. "We never introduced ourselves to each other because I didn't speak Kurdish the last time around."

"Oh, of course, it seems I have forgotten my manners as host. I am Yasin bin Ejder. Once again, thank you, from the bottom of my heart."

"Nice to meet you, Yasin. Out of curiosity, why does Amira call herself 'bint Arsalan' and you 'bin Ejder?"

"Ejder was my father. Amira instead took the name of our ancestor when Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār appeared for her."

"Ah, that explains it. Now, once again, I ask you both: Amira, will you join me as my Knight? Yasin, may I have your blessing to claim your daughter?"

The two looked at one another before Yasin spoke. "You may. Amira, my daughter, ever since Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār appeared for you, you have acted as the protector of this village. The people do not know. They will never know, but more than once did you fight off the supernatural. While other villages rotted away in plagues or were caught up in war, you have been our shield. It is time to relieve you of this duty. Go with him. Become strong. See the world. Find love. You have given of yourself long enough. Now, it is time to live for your own sake."

With a heavy heart, Amira gave her father one final hug and turned to me with her hands outstretched. I placed first one, then two knights into her hands, only to receive nothing. "What… what's supposed to happen?"

"Is she too strong for even both knights?" Valerie peered curiously at the dull pieces.

"Looks like it. Amira, how good are you with that sword?" I asked. "No, actually, just give me a list of all the things you can do."

"I am a proficient swordswoman, though I am entirely self-taught. I wield one of the most powerful holy swords in existence. I am of the lineage of a legendary hero and king. I am also an ifrit, capable of extensive fire and illusion magic," she said proudly.

Both Valerie and I gaped. I had expected her to be good, but I was expecting a Xenovia counterpart. "This, this changes things," I muttered.

"Hmm, a ridiculously powerful close quarters weapon, physical training, and offensive and support magic to boot… Onii-chan, I think you found your all-rounder ace."

I wordlessly replaced the two knights with the most powerful piece in any devil's peerage. "Valerie's right," I spoke, "you have the potential to be strong, fast, and a magical powerhouse. More than that, while passionate, you are also quite mature. Once again, Amira bint Arsalan, will you stand as my Queen?"

With a dazzling smile, Amira held the piece to her heart and a bronze glow filled the house.

 **Author's Note**

 **I hope my brief take on the relationship between youkai and devils was okay. Let me know what you thought of it. If you think nine months is too short for Luca's growth curve, please keep in mind that most of DxD takes place within one or two years and Issei shot up to "strong enough to fight Ophis" by the end of it. Sure, he had the Boosted Gear as a bullshit crutch, but Luca is smarter, more experienced, trained since he could walk, has access to amazingly powerful teachers, two bishop pieces from a maou, and a relatively powerful Sacred Gear of his own. I briefly mentioned it in chapter 1, but the smart thing to do with Twilight Healing is to work your ass off, then accelerate your natural healing process to get the most out of that workout and extend your stamina. Given DxD, his growth rate is impressive, but not to the extent of godly plot armor.**

 **I seriously hope you guys will read up on Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār because it's easily as powerful as DxD's interpretation of Durandal and can match multiple Excalibur fragments.**

 **So, by the end of this chapter, Luca has already found his Queen and Pawn, both with extraordinary potential. Who will be next…?**

 **As always, constructive feedback is appreciated.**

 **Pat reon dot com slash Sorre**


	5. Chapter 5

**Preface**

 **Hello all, happy Monday! I said I'd update at least one story every two weeks, so I'm going to go ahead and toss out the fifth chapter of Resounding Healer. For whatever reason, it's my most popular story… I'm not sure why to be honest, I'm much more invested in Gaming Guardian personally.**

 **Regardless, I've gotten a ton of feedback about Luca's magic and capabilities and I appreciate them all. I had most of this chapter written when I published chapter four, but I think some of you will find that we think alike. Anyway, please enjoy!**

 **Chapter 5: Data x Dissent**

This was the first time I had visited my territory in person. I had seen pictures of the pretty little lake, but nothing compares to a first hand look. When I first watched the anime, I chalked up Kuoh Academy being repaired over a weekend after Kokabiel to anime logic and plot convenience… As it turns out, no, the devils really were that efficient. Things like hammering nails, cutting materials down to size, or even installing proper circuitry and ventilation could all be exponentially accelerated with magic and when it comes to maximizing convenience, devils were pioneers.

So, within only a week, my six bed, six bath manor was finished. I decided on six because with the King, Queen, Rook, Bishop, Knight, and Pawn, six was the minimum number of bedrooms I would need. I may end up with more members in my peerage, but those could be figured out later.

I still call it a manor, but it was really more like a collective living arrangement, a more luxurious dormitory rather than any sort of wealthy home for a medieval knight. The first floor held a main hallway that branched off into the kitchen, sitting room, my office, a room with a transportation circle for guests, and library. It also opened up on one end to the patio that overlooked the lake. The second floor held six rooms, three of which would serve as guest rooms for the time being. When we first stepped inside, we met Jonah Screwtape, the butler Serafall assigned to me. She wanted to give me more, but really, a house this size with a single caretaker was more than enough for me. If any of those snobby nobles asked, I'd just claim that I lived with Serafall and that I used this place as a vacation spot.

After setting up our rooms, we stepped out into a designated training ground, protected with the same enchantments that were on Serafall's. Facing my new peerage members, I spoke, "Okay, my adorable minions! We're going to have a free for all spar to see where we're all at!"

The two women exchanged irritated glances and seemed to come to some sort of unspoken understanding. "Sounds good, _master_ ," Amira said. Somehow, the way she said that made me want to run and hide.

I shook off the feeling of dread and fell into a defensive stance, my left arm forward and my right arm close to my chest. Lyric Armament was in its tuning fork form, strapped to my right wrist like a punch dagger. "On three then. One." Valerie took a few steps back and began to concentrate her magic. Her shadow deepened and rippled as though the surface of a pond. "Two." Amira drew a sword, not Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār. "Huh, did you pick up a new sword?" I interrupted my countdown.

"Yep, Zorro-kun is too dangerous to use in a spar. We're all devils so a scratch would probably kill us. And even if the holy aura didn't kill, the poison would…" she trailed off.

"Zorro-kun?" the resident dhampir asked.

Amria flushed. "I-I mean, you call Luca 'onii-chan' and Luca calls Satan Leviathan 'Sera-tan' so…"

"Aww, you felt left out," I crowed and gave her a hug. "Don't worry, you can call Serafall 'Sera-tan' too. She actually tried to make Val call her that."

"S-Shut up!" she yelled as she shoved me away by my head. "How did devils with perfect language skills end up using Japanese honorifics anyway?"

"Sera-tan and Sirzechs-sama are catering to their little sisters, who both love Japan. Sera-tan also just likes the magical girl genre as a whole. The other maou… just followed that lead because they don't care one way or the other."

"I see… and it is our job to follow Serafall-sama's lead?"

"Yup, that's the spirit!" I said cheerfully as I slid back into my combat stance. "I still think 'Zorro-kun' is an adorable name for your sword."

"Shut it," she mumbled.

"You're going to have to tell us about all the things that sword can do though. I had no idea there was such a thing as a poisonous holy sword."

"Later." She steeled herself and readied the practice sword. It was still made of steel, a scimitar in roughly the same shape as "Zorro-kun," without the sharpened edge.

"Well then… One. Go!" I shouted in rapid succession to catch them off guard. I took two steps back to get a better view of my opponents and was surprised when, instead of attacking each other, they both leapt towards me with eyes that promised suffering. "Oi! What the hell?"

I screamed, a very manly scream, I promise, as I ducked under a spear of rippling darkness that extended from my "little sister's" shadow. That was immediately followed by three quick slashes from Amira. That was the tricky thing about scimitars. They were, almost always, one-handed weapons. In the supernatural world, with magic shields and metals and absurdly thick hides, purely one-handed weapons weren't very common. Most could be swung with both hands for better slashing power and an easier time channeling magic. It was easier to saturate a blade with magic using both hands rather than one after all. Zorro-kun… By Leviathan was that still weird to say… Zorro-kun could cut pretty much anything anyway, so it was one of the rare exceptions. The sword Amira was using, while not Zorro-kun, was still wielded with one hand and swung towards my neck so quickly that the very air sizzled.

Why do I mention her hands? Because she is part ifrit. She had a ball of scorching red fire ready to throw in my face as soon as I dodged. I hastily intercepted with an orb of chilled magic, but my elementary ice magic was overwhelmed by the massive blast of fire that licked at my arm. Had I been a regular human, my arm would be nothing more than a black husk. Devil durability or not, third degree burns covered it.

I jumped away and immediately began to hum a healing melody. In moments, Twilight Healing set in and it was as though that attack had never landed. "You have far better control over your fire than I thought you would," I remarked.

"What, did you think I was stagnant over the last three years?" she scoffed.

Then, both of my pieces sped towards me. A cloak of fire enveloped Amira. "Fuck, this is supposed to be a free for all!" I screamed as I ran from another of Valerie's shadows.

"Yes, but surely our great _master_ can handle a few _minions_ ," my "little sister" said in a sickly sweet voice.

I ducked a sword swing then took to the air to avoid a fireball to the face. "That's what this is about? I was just playing!"

"So are we," Amira chirped. Then, she took a deep breath and spread her arms wide, tossing a wave of fire in every direction.

"Hey!" Valerie cried as she flew up to avoid the flames. Vampires didn't like fire on principle.

"Meh, it's about time we actually had a free for all anyway. I think we've messed with Luca enough."

The dhampir huffed and suddenly, the shadows cast by Amira's flames gained minds of their own, launching themselves at the swordswoman. "Fine!"

Amira scoffed and whispered something I couldn't hear over the roaring flames. Suddenly, there were multiple copies of her dancing around her shadowy opponents. I took this brief reprieve to gauge their abilities. 'Amira did say she had some illusion magic, but she didn't use it until she had more fire. I was already in the air so she wouldn't have hit me. If she wanted to hit Val with a surprise attack, she could have thrown a fireball instead of trying to burn everything around her. She needs fire to make illusions then? No, it's something more than that. She needs the heat shimmers,' I reasoned. 'Great at close combat, strong offensive magic, and a decent support repertoire, she really was a great choice for Queen. Valerie though…'

Val had created six shadowy tendrils to try and catch Amira off guard, only to be unable to tell which is the real opponent. She was trying, but they were locked in a temporary stalemate. Shadows couldn't be cut, at least not permanently. In turn, Amira was too fast and skilled to be caught by Val. 'Heat shimmers don't leave shadows,' I mused. 'She should be able to find the real Amira eventually, but it looks like she hasn't noticed yet.' When Amira had a second to breathe, she sent a large fireball Val's way. The dhampir was unable to maintain control of her shadows while distracted. That gave Amira the room to spread her wings and chase after her.

I decided to join in their impromptu game of tag by turning Lyric Armament into a mike and sending the most impressive roar I could their way. "FUS RO DAH!" No, I didn't need to say any words, but the temptation was too strong. The two were struck by a physical force, the strength of the impact sending them careening away. Even as they wheeled through the air, I could see their flat stares, judging me and undoubtedly wondering why they chose to serve a LARPer king.

Fun fact, devils have increased senses. Another fun fact, you don't get to turn them off. Both dhampir and ifrit clutched their bleeding ears. They recovered quickly, but didn't even bother trying to speak or listen. A quick glance towards one another told me they had come to another truce. I braced myself and spiked up my magic as far as it would go. An extra pair of wings sprouted from my back in response, catching my subordinates by surprise. Unperturbed, they flew towards me at speed, but I already had the mike to my lips.

"BOOMBURST!" I roared, sending a wall of sound in all directions. I fully intended to rip off every franchise I could think of, thank you. Boomburst was a technique I made only recently in one of my training spars with Aziz. I tried and failed to dodge a hail of sharpened quills; bishops weren't known for our speed after all. Instead of making a magic barrier that Aziz would undoubtedly break through easily, I decided to make a skill that would function both as an offense and defense. It worked… sorta. Unlike a barrier, I could move while shouting. It functioned basically like an omnidirectional Sonic Roar, but the range suffered as a result. I could use it to throw aside projectiles, but could not reach the airborne Aziz.

Amira, being the much faster one, reached me long before Valerie. Her sword swing was deflected and she was shot back by my magic, sporting a sizable bruise on her cheek from where she ran into that wall of sound headfirst. Valerie, being slower, did not reach the effective radius until after the technique, allowing her to rush in with claws extended.

Lyric Armament turned into a massive cymbal which I used as a shield. Her claws rang across the metal, sending shivers down both our spines. She flew backwards to compose herself from the nails on chalkboard sensation. "That-that's a horrible shield, onii-chan."

"Your hearing's already back?"

"Yeah, now let me stab you!" She thrust her claws forward, but I dodged, putting the cymbal in front again. Hey, the screeching wasn't pleasant, but it was at least better than getting shanked.

I managed to block Val, but couldn't avoid receiving a cut to my side from the much more skilled Amira. "Seriously? Double teaming me again?" I cried as I retreated. This time, they didn't let me concentrate on healing myself. Twilight Healing was active and I was humming a tune to speed things along, but they were gaining fast.

"Promote! Bishop!" Valerie cried. Then, I felt my blood lurch out of my body. She had stopped chasing me, hovering in the air and arms outstretched in concentration. The blood turned into crimson spikes of oxidized iron, keeping my wound from closing completely.

'Clever, she's not as powerful as she could be, but she's definitely creative. She's obviously exerting herself to do even this though. A devil's natural magic resistance maybe?' I stopped trying to accelerate my healing. I wouldn't be bleeding out anytime soon so there wasn't much point, still stung like a bitch though.

While Val was distracted, I turned my Lyric Armament back into its dagger form and lunged to meet Amira. She blocked the thrust with her scimitar and I grinned. "Resonant Impact!" I shouted, sending a powerful sound wave into her sword. I wasn't about to use an attack that could atomize someone on my Queen, but her weapon was fair game. The steel shook itself apart, seemingly shattering and evaporating into microscopic pieces.

"Wha-"

I didn't let her finish. My foot found her face and she was sent to the ground. By that time, Valerie had realized what a waste of time it was trying to open my wound further with blood manipulation and gave up. She dove for the ground; in the air, there were no shadows for her to use. I caught up to her easily though, and grabbed her in a bear hug from behind. I wanted to suplex her, but felt something sharp dig into my neck. I was forced to let go, a blade of black rising up from the shadow on her own neck cast by her hair. 'Creative little brat.'

Instead, I kicked off her back and launched a ball of ice to speed her towards the ground. She turned to gloat and took the attack to the face. That would have been painful enough, but her head ricocheted against the ground, knocking her out for the time being.

Amira rose on shaky legs. "You… you're stronger than I thought you'd be."

"I had good teachers," I smirked. "I'm more impressed with you actually. You had to figure out most of your abilities on your own, right?"

"Yeah, thanks. Now, are we still going to fight?"

"Nah, let's end. I think I've got a good idea of your abilities and you saw what I can do too."

"Fine by me; I'm tired." She plopped back onto the dirt.

I chuckled as I began to sing "Music is Healing." Florida Georgia Line wasn't my favorite band, I really only knew this one song, but the song was just too appropriate. The three of us sighed in bliss as the magic of my Sacred Gear flowed through the lyrics.

When we got back inside, Jonah was waiting for us with fresh, warm towels. "Master Luca, Her highness has come to visit. I took the liberty of showing them to your sitting room," he said with a courteous bow.

"Sera-tan? Them? Okay, thank you, Jonah. And I told you, you can drop the 'master.'"

"Nonsense, you are the lord of this house and a baron." He looked as though I personally offended his mother so I didn't push.

Before I even stepped into my sitting room, I was tackled to the floor by the pink missile of love and affection feared across all the realms as the Leviathan. "Lu-tan~ I missed you! Why didn't you come to work for the last week?" she cried.

'Are her eyes genuinely tearing up? She's got to be magicing them in,' I thought. I returned the hug as best as I could. "I'm dirty, Sera-tan. At least let me take a shower first. Besides, didn't you see the form I turned in? I took a week long vacation."

"Noooo," she wailed, "I put all the forms on your desk, silly~"

Everyone in the room collectively facepalmed. Leave it to Serafall to come knocking because she wanted to make me file paperwork _I_ submitted in the first place. "Well either way, get up," I told her. She was stuck to me like a limpet so I had no choice but to pick her up in my arms.

I stood up and saw that she wasn't alone. Her companion had shoulder length black hair, glasses, and Serafall's dazzling violet eyes. To her left sat another young woman with long black hair and heterochromia. "Oh, I'm sorry," I said, "I didn't realize Sera-tan brought along friends. Sona Sitri I presume?"

"Yes, I see you are well accustomed to my sister's… eccentricities," she said with a ghost of a smile. "Onee-sama decided that now would be a good time to introduce us to one another. I would also like you to meet Tsubaki Shinra, my Queen." Beside her, Tsubaki gave a respectful bow.

'Yeah, I bet it feels good to watch someone else suffer in your place,' I thought. Then, I had a brilliant idea. "Sera-tan."

"Yes, Lu-tan?" she looked up from my arms.

"I am your Bishop."

"Yes!" she chirped with a smile that would outshine Helios.

"As a member of your peerage, my actions reflect upon you."

"Yes!" she cheered.

"And therefore, I should conduct myself in a manner that best represents my King," I finished and shot Sona a meaningful glance.

"Yes…?" she trailed off.

It took a moment, but both sisters came to the same realization at the same time. Sona's face paled in horror while Serafall gained a mischievous glint in her eyes. "In that case," I dropped Serafall and she immediately sprang up, staring at her sister with hungry eyes.

""SO-TAN~~~"" we both sang as we launched ourselves towards her.

"NOOOOO!" she tried, she really did. She scrambled away, but we were too fast for her. Serafall had Sona's entire lifetime's worth of experience in coraling her sister and all I had to do was follow her lead.

Soon enough, we had her sandwiched between us. It was a little weird giving someone I'd just met such a crushing hug, but the look of pure despair and loathing she sent my way was worth it. Still standing by the entrance, Amira and Valerie sighed, already used to my rather unorthodox sense of humor. Tsubaki… decided it just wasn't worth the effort and went back to the tea Jonah had so thoughtfully provided. After a minute, I let go and pulled Serafall off of her squirming sister. I sat down opposite Sona with Serafall firmly locked on my lap. It wouldn't do to have her give her sister a heart attack. Then, I motioned for Amira and Valerie to join me, each taking a seat at my side.

"So, now that our… introductions… are out of the way," both Sera and I exchanged shit eating grins, "what can I do for you, _So-tan_?" I asked innocently.

Tsubaki coughed into her cup to hide a laugh, entirely unsuccessfully. Sona's eyebrow developed a distinctly unhealthy looking twitch before she took a deep breath and calmed herself. "I already detest you, Rossi-san," she declared flatly.

I laughed. "Tell you what, So-tan. I'll stop spontaneously giving you hugs if you call me Luca."

"Stop calling me 'So-tan' and you have a deal."

"Nah."

She glowered, but relented. "Fine…"

"I apologize for my onii-chan's stupidity," Valerie said as she nibbled on a victoria sandwich.

"Hey now, I'm not stupid," I whined.

""Yes you are,"" both my Queen and Pawn declared as though they were prophets stating an immutable truth of the universe. I rested my chin on Serafall's head.

"Excuse me, Luca-san, I was under the impression that you had no siblings."

"I don't have any biological siblings," I said. "Valerie here is my Pawn and Amira is my Queen." Each gave a polite bow in turn. "Now, Sera-tan, did you drag your sister here just to say hi?"

"No, silly, I brought her here so you could meet your new landlady," she chirped.

The room fell silent.

"What?"

"You're the new ambassador to Kyoto and since Japan has only one devil outpost, you're both going to be living in Kuoh!" she cheered.

Sona and I exchanged disbelieving glances. "Onee-sama," she bit out, "you promised not to involve yourself in my education."

"I'm not, So-tan, Lu-tan really does need to be in Kuoh. I tried setting up an embassy in Kyoto, but the Youkai representative told me to set one up in Kuoh with a transportation circle to Kyoto. They don't want devils in their city any more than they absolutely need to. So, he'll be going to Kuoh Academy with you."

Despite the sound logic, Sona shot her sister a withering glare. I decided to diffuse the tension as best as I could. "I know Kuoh has been your and the Gremory heiress' home for the past few years, So-tan. I promise I have no intention of intervening in how you run the city. Unless an international incident develops there for some reason, you won't have any reason to interact with me as a devil," I said. "My mission there is to reopen diplomatic relations with Yasaka hime-sama and Amaterasu-sama. I think you'll agree, we devils have much to make up for."

"Why does it have to be you?" she spat. "I don't mean to offend, Luca-san, but I would prefer a diplomat who is not in my sister's peerage."

"I can't, So-tan. I wanted to make Cassie-chan the ambassador, but the Youkai representative got mad. He said that So-tan and Ria-tan have been living in Kuoh for years, but such important people haven't even bothered to say hello to Kyoto."

"So he doesn't think we're taking the negotiations seriously," I said. "You're sending me because despite Sona being a Pillar heiress and your little sister, she isn't a part of MOFA. She can't speak for the Underworld."

Serafall nodded, uncharacteristically solemn. Sona looked irritated. Given how good she was at maintaining her cool facade, even that small show of frustration spoke volumes. Eventually, she had to concede the point; the political ramifications of sending anyone viewed as unimportant would be disastrous. In light of that, her wounded pride wouldn't even be a part of the cost-benefit calculus. "I understand," she breathed out, "but I fully intend to hold you to your promise, Luca-san."

I smiled. "Of course. No hugs, no interference. Me and my peerage will stay out of your way. Of course, if you feel, for whatever reason, that you are out of your depth, we will happily help you. If you're half as smart as Sera-tan says you are, you should know when you need the extra muscle."

"Thank you."

"Good," Serafall said brightly, "Lu-tan can show So-tan all the lovey-dovey things for me!"

"Unlikely," she drawled, "but I think we shouldn't have any problems being civil."

I nodded. "I promised I wouldn't glomp her whenever we meet, but it's never bad to have friends nearby."

"Lu-tan," Serafall said, "I'm cutting your vacation a day short. I want you to begin packing to go to Japan right away. I wanted to show you off to the other nobles, but that can wait. The longer we put off you going there, the more offended they'll get."

"Will do."

X

After properly introducing Amira to Serafall, we took a quick shower and began to pack. The next day, my king was back. This time, she had a young woman, roughly in her mid twenties following after her. She had teal blue eyes and hair, something I wasn't too surprised to see anymore. Anime universe and anime logic. Like with every woman in DxD, she was beautiful, the classic "ice queen."

"Lu-tan, this is Cassie-chan, the person I had originally planned to make ambassador. She's going to be going with you to Japan as your assistant."

"Greetings, Baron Rossi," she said cooly, her voice every bit as alluring as the rest of her. "My name is Cassandra, second daughter of House Foras of the 72 Pillars." Despite her emotionless greeting, I could tell, she was pissed. To be fair, I would be too if I was sidelined simply because I wasn't politically important enough.

I managed to remember enough of the etiquette training to take her hand and kiss her knuckles. "A pleasure, Heiress Foras," I replied smoothly. "I am inexperienced, but please lend me your wisdom." She seemed mollified by my answer, if only slightly. "Further, please call me Luca. If we are to work together, I would like for us to be as cordial as possible."

"Very well… Luca, you may call me by my given name as well."

"Great!" Serafall chirped, "you two are going to be amazing together."

After I introduced Cassandra to my peerage, we were ushered to the MOFA headquarters in Lilith, the Underworld's capital city. There, we moved through a transport circle to an office building that had been renovated for our use.

"Fuck… I don't remember traveling by magic circle to be this nauseating," I groaned as I stumbled out of the room with our transport circle. It was enchanted to be entirely unnoticeable by the mundane help that cleaned the office. Inside, the room contained not a single piece of furniture and the white floor was decorated only by the circle bearing the Leviathan's seal.

"A dimensional barrier separates the Underworld from the human world. This is also true of the primary domains of other factions," Cassandra recited robotically as though reading from a textbook. "It is why the train was installed. The train itself is engraved with thousands of runic arrays and magic circles that allow the transition from one dimension to another to flow seamlessly. It remains one of his majesty Beelzebub's great contributions to our world."

"I see," I said even as I winced at her frosty tone. "Thank you for that. Cassandra-san, please use Japanese honorifics while we are in Japan. While we are here, we should do our best to show our respect for the people."

"I hardly think such a minor show will be relevant," she scoffed, "but very well… Luca-san."

I beamed at her. "Besides, Sera-tan likes those honorifics too. She wouldn't insist that I call her 'Sera-tan' otherwise."

Cassandra looked deeply conflicted by that information. She seemed like she wanted to grab me by my collar and demand I show proper respect to the woman who was undoubtedly her childhood hero. Then, her expression turned into something resembling a weeb's at an anime convention, the sheer amount of adoration and fangirling was honestly rather impressive. Finally, she settled on her usual cool acceptance. 'I gotcha,' I thought. If nothing else, her borderline worship of Serafall would be a good source of leverage.

After getting my bearings, I let out a low whistle. "Damn, our guys work fast." Beside me, my peerage also looked suitably impressed with the devil construction crew. The office space was in fact three top floors of the tallest skyscraper in Kuoh, because of course it was. Serafall always did have a flair for the dramatics and she probably thought something like "Lu-tan should be able to cackle like a super awesome devil while looking down on the whole city!" or something along those lines…

The top floor was a penthouse suite used by yours truly, divided up into multiple rooms for myself and my peerage. Cassandra also took a room. To my disappointment, she took the room furthest from my own. The floor below that was divided in two, one half consisted of office spaces for each of us. The other was a cross between a massive, walk-in filing cabinet and a library. I was happy to note that it was already stocked and sorted with the biology of most youkai species, recent laws, and the unedited version of the history between the Shinto Faction and devils as a whole, before and after our civil war. The floor below that acted as one part greeting room, one part visa processing center for visitors to the Underworld, one part transport circle, and one part cafeteria for those who I assumed would work here once everything got sorted. It was honestly kind of nice, not having to travel to work.

On the table in the waiting area, I found a note from Serafall. Seeing how it was addressed to all of us, I decided to read it aloud. "'Lu-tan, Cassie-chan, Ami-chan, and Val-chan, if you're reading this, the galaxy is in danger. Each of you must don the light of the Milky Spiral and recite the Magical Milky Spiral Hymn of Love. Repeat after me-' Redacted for all our sanities," I deadpanned. I skipped the unnecessary song. "'Muuu, Lu-tan, you skipped the song didn't you? Even though I had it composed just for you… Well fine, be a meanie. I was going to tell you that the kitchen in the penthouse is already stocked and that regular staff can be requested as you need them, but fine… I guess I told you just now, didn't I? Hee hee, don't worry, I meant to do that. Now, the real reason for this letter is that since today is a Friday, you'll be starting school on Monday. I wish I could go to school with you all too… I'm super jealous! It's your final year, so do your best!' She's joking… right? 'No, I'm not joking. Yes, that's you too, Cassie-chan.'" I gave Cassandra a tentative glance. She got over her shock rather quickly and ripped the letter out of my hand. After reading it over, she tossed it back to me with a visible slump to her shoulders.

"'Lu-tan and Ami-chan will be seniors, just like So-tan. I made sure to put you in the same class as her and Ria-tan so take care of them~'" That was followed by several hearts and a chibi-Serafall tossing a wink my way. "'Val-chan is going to be a second year. I put her in the same class as So-tan's Bishops so she'll be fine. Now, Lu-tan, Cassie-chan will be your new homeroom teacher! Isn't that awesome?'" I looked her way and felt myself die a little inside. She was most definitely going to take out her frustration on me… "'Well, that's about it. Oh yeah, over the weekend, you should use the transport circle to Kyoto. Cassie-chan knows how to set it up. You should go and say hi, okay? Toodles! Love you! Kisses! Your super duper awesome king, Sera-tan.'"

The four of us looked at each other. """"Well, shit,"""" we all collectively groaned.

 **Author's Note**

 **Anyone else read the Screwtape Letters? :D**

 **So, finally we are on the starting line. Please tell me what you thought of the fight between the peerage. Foras is actually one of the Ars Goetia and is considered a president, one of the weakest members of the Pillars.**

 **As always, constructive feedback is appreciated.**

 **Pat reon dot com slash Sorre**


	6. Chapter 6

**Preface**

 **Before you guys get to reading, I have a poll on my profile. I am thinking about adding another story to the rotation. Please send me some feedback.**

 **Some of you pointed out that I messed up pretty badly in chapter four. I gave Luca a king piece. In DxD canon, the king piece is not in circulation because unlike the other pieces, they don't reincarnate. Instead, they amplify the user's power exponentially and it generally leads to insanity, death, etc. if the user isn't strong enough. Long story short, I edited the chapter a bit. You can go back to read it, but otherwise, here's the recap.**

 **Luca received an evil piece set from Ajuka. Serafall, knowing he's still too weak to be a satan's bishop, decides that his existence should be kept on the down low as much as possible. So, Ajuka develops a placeholder. He has Luca place his magic inside of a storage device, shaped like a crown for aesthetics. Ajuka, off screen, adds Luca's magic signature to the central monument in Lilith while performing "maintenance." This is how Luca got his evil piece set to work for him without visiting Lilith.**

 **There, you guys who started reading before this edit are all caught up. Anyway, here's chapter six, happy Monday.**

 **Chapter 6: Doctors x Desu yo?**

I woke up to the feeling of my chest being compressed. I used to panic at waking up to such a sensation, but that was four months ago. Now, I just rolled the lazy lump of flesh over and sat up to go about my typical morning routine. Said lump of flesh quivered and tried to warm herself under the blanket using what was left of my body heat. She'd wake up soon enough.

Still wearing my sweatpants and t-shirt, I stumbled out into the communal kitchen to find something to eat. I was mildly surprised to find Amira already there, dressed for the day in what I found out last night was Kurdish formal wear. It was a long, elegant gown of deep crimson embroidered with stiches of golden lions. Over the dress, she wore a simple vest of a darker red, closer to burgundy, that shared the lion motif. Serafall had also provided a large ruby, almost half the size of my palm, to be worn as a necklace. According to them, the Kurdish women traditionally wore a lot of jewelry as symbols of status and my Queen wasn't allowed to look anything but her best. I gave her a once over and let out an appreciative whistle.

"Shut it." She moved to slap my arm but almost tripped over her own dress. "How does anyone move in this?" she complained. I couldn't hold in a chuckle. Sure, she looked ravishing, but Amira wasn't much of the princess type.

My Queen had already warmed a plate of flatbread with a side of eggs, cherry tomatoes, olives, and unsweetened yogurt, a typical Kurdish breakfast. The table was set for four with several jars of assorted jams and honey. Typically, the lazy lump of flesh that occasionally went by the name of Valerie did her level best to not leave bed until all the residual warmth had dissipated. The few times Serafall stayed over my manor, she likewise slept until noon, something about refusing to obey a sun that she helped create. It was a novel experience, having my breakfast already made by someone other than Jonah.

I walked over and picked a tomato off the bowl. There were three types of jams, one a fiery red, one pink, and one an amber gold. I shrugged and stuck a finger inside the red one. "Huh… some sort of raspberry? Maybe a hint of chili?"

My Queen scowled at me judgmentally. "You could wait for everyone else, you know," she huffed. I shot her my best shit-eating grin as I popped the jam covered finger in my mouth. The sweet and sour tang of raspberries really didn't go well with the tomato. Amira laughed at my scowl. "That's what you get. Now sit down and wait for everyone."

I sat myself with an exaggerated pout, getting another eye roll form her. Several minutes later, Valerie stumbled out of my… our?... room, still rubbing sleep from her eyes. She wore a set of cream white and gray pajamas. The top was a furry, gray hoodie with a cartoonish bat donning a top hat, monocle, and a mischievous smile. Serafall and I went shopping once and she thought it'd look cute on Val. She wasn't wrong, the little vampire looked absolutely adorable. She sent a bleary hello towards Amira and sat down next to me.

Next came the most recent addition to our group, Cassandra Foras. She stepped out with her damp hair in a towel, already dressed in a sharp, navy business suit. She took a single glance at my and Valerie's disheveled appearances and flicked her nose in distaste. "At least one of you is dressed appropriately," she muttered, not low enough to go unheard. Valerie stuck out her tongue in a display of peerless self-discipline.

After fetching two pitchers of water and tea, Amira joined us.

I decided to diffuse the tension. "Relax, we don't need to head to Kyoto until eleven and it's only nine thirty. Sit down and have breakfast with us."

She stared judgmentally but eventually acquiesced, taking a seat across from me and next to Amira. "Oh, very well, Luca-san. I suppose your dress can wait. Perhaps it's for the best, no doubt you'll need my help preparing for such an important occasion."

My peerage scowled, but I ignored the jab with an easy smile and placed a dollop of fig jam and honey into my share of yogurt. Definitely tasted better than tomato and raspberry jam. "Well, since you're so well prepared, mind giving us a quick brief?"

"As you wish. As you know, we are meeting with Lad - Yasaka hime-sama," she corrected herself. Showing respect by abiding by native honorifics was something both Serafall and I stressed, though I had a sneaking suspicion that Cassie complied more for Serafall's sake than mine. "We were asked to be there by eleven, but we should try to arrive ten minutes before as to preempt any unforeseen problems. Further, we should all keep in mind that Yasaka hime-sama is not only the leader of the Youkai Faction, she is also the avatar of Amaterasu-sama, the ruler of the Shinto Faction. Therefore, we are not merely speaking with the sovereign of one faction, but two. We cannot afford any mistakes," she finished sternly.

"Umm," Valerie said hesitantly, "Should I really be going then? I don't have any experience in diplomacy and I'm just a pawn…"

I sent her a reassuring smile and wrapped her in a one armed hug. "Yes. You don't have to be at every single meeting, but first impressions are important and I want Yasaka hime-sama to meet everyone in this little embassy."

Cassandra nodded in approval. "Indeed. If the youkai find out that you were absent without cause, they may see it as a sign that we don't think they are worth our full attention."

Valerie slumped forward, dejected. "Darn… I need to wear something nice too, right?"

"Yes," I said. My hand reached out to rub her head comfortingly. "Don't worry, Sera-tan sent over some formal wear with us if I remember right."

"Mmk…" She spread her yogurt and strawberry jam onto the flatbread. Honestly, it was more jam than either bread or yogurt, but whatever floats her boat.

"Cassie-"

"Cassandra," she said.

I sighed, "Cassandra-san, do you have an agenda for the meeting?"

She nodded. "The primary purpose of this meeting is to greet one another. That said, the first step to any form of negotiation is to get an idea of the objectives and desires of the opposing party. The Youkai and Shinto Factions are going to try to get the measure of you."

"Fair, now correct me if I'm wrong. Japan as a whole doesn't have a whole lot in the way of magical flora used as reagents and their traditionally isolationist policies have left them with relatively few trading partners so they're also likely missing some of the more exotic knowledge and goods. On the other hand, we, the devils, want permission to expand in Japanese territory. As for marketable goods and knowledge, Japan excels in barriers, seals, divination, and rituals. They're especially good at purification rituals and can really only be rivaled by the Church and Celts in that regard. We also wouldn't say no to some of their masterwork blades either."

"Yes, but that wasn't what I meant by objectives, Luca-san. What the nation wants is not always what the negotiator wants. So," she stared at me with a piercing glare, "what do you want, _Ambassador_ Rossi?"

Besides us, Amira and Valerie looked on, confused. I took a sip of water and another bite of the flatbread. It wasn't my favorite breakfast, I was English in my past life and I'll stick with the full English, but it wasn't half bad. "I figured you'd ask me that. Honestly, I don't have a dog in the fight, Cassie." I ignored her reproachful scowl and continued. "I've only been a devil for about a year now. That means that I haven't been in contact with any of the Pillars. In fact, aside form Sona Sitri, you're the first Pillar member I've ever met. I can't pursue further status gains because there's no way the old guard would recognize someone so young. I don't think I want to be anything higher than baron anyway. Being 'the Leviathan's Bishop' is prestigious enough.

"I don't really need more money because Sera-tan provides everything. I don't have any motivation beyond doing as my King ordered and my King ordered that I broker peace by any means. I suppose if I could be selfish, I'd try to recruit more people to my peerage, but even that's a direct order from Sera-tan. I'm expected to participate in the Young Devil's Gathering, see, and I need a strong enough peerage that I don't shame her. I could say the same for you, Cassandra Foras, what do you want?"

She sighed and suddenly found her tea very interesting. Finally, after a minute, she began. "House Foras… what do you know of it?" she asked. Seeing three blank faces, she let out another sigh, this one more resigned. "As I expected. House Foras both is and is not one of the 72 Pillars. By that, I mean that House Foras is a presidential house, not a noble house. Simply put, even a baron outranks us. Despite that, we are considered a Pillar because we've historically fulfilled one invaluable role: We are mediators. When two Pillars have a dispute, whether it be over territory, marriage, or money, the issue would be settled through a duel to avoid a feud. We would temporarily be given ownership of the disputed good, like a land deed, and we would act as impartial mediators. As a house that wasn't even nobility, that was relatively easy. Like you said, we had no dog in the fight. Of course, in the old days, the Old Satans sometimes got involved, but no one wanted their brutality turned towards us if we could help it so House Foras was necessary. Now that the Underworld has a proper court system and rule of law, we aren't as important as we used to be. We're included among the Pillars more out of respect for tradition than anything else.

"My father… he is an ambitious man. He wanted to make House Foras important again and I agree with the sentiment. We just… have differing definitions of importance. I look up to Leviathan-sama, you know. She's a beacon, the shining example of female success in a patriarchal society hellbent on clinging to tradition. I wanted to take our historical role and expand it to the global stage."

"I see…" And I did. Her resentment towards me made so much sense now. She wasn't just upset because she got sidelined by a rookie. She was _pissed_ because her attempts to raise her house into significance was rendered meaningless by something as petty as my connection to Serafall. "I'm sorry."

"I don't want your sorry," she spat bitterly, all trace of decorum vanishing in her frustration. "If I can't be the ambassador, you're damn well not going to fuck up under my watch. You better be the best damn thing to happen to the Underworld since the Yondai Maou so I can take the credit. Got it?"

"I promise, I will do my best to live up to your expectations," I said solemnly. "Please don't think that you're being pushed aside. I'm here as Sera-tan's mouthpiece, but I'm still inexperienced and I know that. I'm going to need you to hold my hand through this."

"As long as you understand that, we should be able to cooperate," she sniffed.

And just like that, it was almost time to go. Valerie and I rushed to put on our formal wear, a white and red European dress that paired nicely with Amira's for her and a standard black business suit with a red tie for me. The tie bore the sigil of Leviathan in eye catching sapphire and a golden lapel pin bearing my name, noble title, and rank in MOFA was placed atop my left breast. The suit was slim but not too tight with burgundy buttons. Underneath, I wore a vest that matched the buttons and a white shirt with the same sapphire outline that made up the sigil. It was hands down the fanciest thing I'd ever worn, or seen anyone ever wear, in both lives. I'm grateful to say, Cassandra only had to correct my tie twice before she was satisfied.

We gathered in the same white room that we arrived in yesterday. After some muttering and magical lights, Cassandra declared the magic circle programmed properly. With a single azure flash, we were off.

X

We appeared outdoors. I mean, it didn't mean much given the metric fuckton of wards that hid Shadow Kyoto form the rest of the bustling city, but it was still a welcome surprise. All around us, sakura trees waved in the gentle breeze, their petals kept perpetually in bloom through the blessings of Kuebiko, the Shinto god of agriculture and knowledge. The trees themselves framed a massive rock garden made of perfectly raked gravel designed to emulate the rippling waves of a pond. We were standing on a raised stone dais with a magic circle carved in for general use. Dotted throughout the garden were small, colorful stones of blue and green, arranged in such a way that the dying light of the summoning circle bounced off them and created the illusion that the waves were in motion. Spires of larger boulders were set to mimic islands, atop which moss had been grown in preset patterns to model mountains and forests. To one side, water trickled into a bamboo fountain, tipping the cup and sending a hollow beat through the garden.

Amira and Valerie couldn't help but gawk at the dazzling display of culture. In terms of wealth and cost, it paled before the ostentatiousness of the Underworld, but the garden we appeared in was undoubtedly far more tastefully cultivated. Truthfully, I was doing my fair share of awestruck gawking, albeit a bit more discreetly.

I was brought back to the present by Cassandra's subtle nudging. I gently tugged on my peerages' sleeves and turned to face the servant meant to greet us.

At 10:50 on the dot, we were a good ten minutes early, a sign of eagerness, for all the good that did us. The servant sent to greet us was a middle aged woman, hair slightly graying but with all the signs of aging with supernatural grace. She smiled genially and if it weren't for a lifetime spent among the Church's equivalent of superspies, I might have bought it as genuine. A minute tightening of her lips, strain at the corners of her eyes, and an almost unnoticeable twitch of her hands towards her left hip told me all I needed to know. This woman was probably used to wearing a sword, conspicuously absent for this occasion, and wouldn't have hesitated for a moment to draw it against us. Judging by the stiffening postures all around me, the rest of my party didn't fall for it either. I let out an internal sigh. We hadn't even spoken yet and even the greeter wanted us dead. Lovely.

She bowed politely, not a rustle of fabric out of place. "Welcome, delegates of the New Satan Faction," she said, her tone of utmost courtesy and respect due to foreign dignitaries. It sounded so rehearsed that I doubted Shakespeare could have found any complaints.

I was once again nudged from my thoughts by Cassandra. This wasn't the time to lose myself. Whatever my inexperience, the first dialogue must come from the ambassador. So, I drew on everything I knew about Japanese society and bowed. My bow was deeper, from the waist and reached until my head was at a perfect right angle from my legs. "It is an honor to enjoy Yasaka hime-sama's hospitality," I spoke. I could already tell, I'd get chewed out by Cassandra later. I could feel her accusatory glare at my back.

If the servant felt anything at all, she didn't show it. Instead, she nodded patiently and waited for me to raise my head. Once I had done so, she looked at us, not quite meeting my eyes. "Come, I was instructed to lead you to her throne room."

We followed her inside. Yasaka's castle doubled as a temple. It wasn't much of a surprise give that she's the avatar of a sun goddess. The interior was just as aesthetically pleasing as the outside, an elegant mix of luxury and pious tradition. We stopped at a pair of massive doors, painted crimson and carved with a myriad of figures. In one corner, I found a man who could only be Susanoo fending of a serpent with eight heads. In another, I saw a cavern and an eight sided mirror. At the center was a figure of the sun, inlaid with gold. Within this sun was a figure of a fox.

"Beautiful, is it not?" our host said, "The carvings were done by our best artisans over the better part of two months. Each beam of wood contains thousands of seals to ensure the privacy and security of our hime-sama."

"Yes, it's beautiful," I said truthfully. She studied my expression and must have seen something acceptable because she pushed forward without comment.

She stepped forward and knocked until a pool of black ink welled up from a carving of a waterfall. The ink somehow molded itself into a seal. She spoke into it clearly. "Yasaka hime-sama, may I announce the Ambassador of the New Sata Faction, Baron Luca Rossi and his entourage?"

Slowly, the massive doors opened. I briefly marveled at their silence, but my musings were cut short by the view. The throne room was massive. It was almost six times the width of the hallway outside and its ceiling was twice as tall. Gigantic pillars of crimson wood stretched to a ceiling that opened to the sky, allowing a dazzling array of sunlight to illuminate the hall. I had no doubt that an array of seals kept debris and rain out. At the far end, a raised throne, sat simultaneously the most seductive and innocent woman I had ever seen.

It's one thing to say that the Queen of Shadow Kyoto was beautiful, but a whole different matter to meet her face to face. Serafall took me aside once and made me promise not to be distracted by her allure. I laughed then, after all, I wasn't Issei. I wouldn't turn into a gawking idiot simply because a woman looked nice. I should have taken note. If Serafall barely-does-her-job Leviathan bothered to warn me, I should have taken this more seriously. I gawked. I stared with drool hanging down my gaping mouth like an idiot.

Yasaka didn't sit, so much as lounge. The throne was large, wide enough for two or three people to sit, if somewhat uncomfortably. It was also laden with more silken blankets than I'd ever seen before, allowing her to lie halfway on her side for leisure. The fox wore a loose shrine maiden's outfit that drooped down one arm, exposing her pale neck and shoulder. Her garb hid little of her cleavage, but her golden tresses kept her modesty while enticing anyone to look.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, I found the self control to tear my gaze from her body and met her eyes. Pools of molten gold greeted me. They were mischievous, amused, as if privy to some joke only she could see. I'm still ashamed that it took me so long to realize: I _was_ that joke. Here was a devil, _an ambassador_ , who couldn't even meet her eyes because she showed a bit of skin.

That thought brought me up short. She still looked dazzling, breathtaking even, but the thought that I had already screwed up irreparably crashed down like the Arctic Ocean on my libido. Then, I felt it, an ever so gentle brush against my magic, my mind, that was not my own. 'Son of a bitch, her allure is supernatural,' I swore. Because, of course it fucking was. I took a deep breath and drew on the pool that had only grown deeper and wider since my death and resurrection. Twilight Healing eagerly answered my call. I had no idea if it would work, but even today, I think it's this asspull that saved my first trip to Kyoto. As with pretty much every other problem, I decided to solve it with song. The opening of Free!'s Dried Up Youthful Fame began in the back of my throat as a slow hum.

I lament over the things I never could give up on,  
But every time, I can't face them down.  
If I laugh and go out to meet the end,  
Maybe I won't make mistakes anymore.

The servant started at the flow of my magic, but a wave of Yasaka's hand stayed her. Next to me, I could see Cassandra scowl in disapproval. It was extraordinarily rude to wield one's magic in another's hall, for obvious reasons. Then again, Yasaka most certainly started this little contest.

In this place of clarity,  
I've begun to notice the shadows  
Of the birds that lift off into the sky.

Behind us, Valerie and Amira hummed along to the unfamiliar tune. At the time, I had no concrete reason why I chose to draw on Twilight Healing. What I had was a theory, a hypothesis. Nothing was wrong with me in the conventional sense of the term, but I felt the need to sing using its power anyway.

There's just one thing to do -  
I can turn all this into vivid memories.

Even if I wasn't suffering from physical wounds, even if I didn't develop some mental disorder, my supernatural attraction to Yasaka was _wrong_. So, I chose a song of focus, of clarity, and willed her magic to become just that, a memory. "Wrong" was subjective and so long as I said so, my mind and soul would be of optimal health, as I defined "optimal health." When I felt her influence over me fade, I allowed the music to fade with it.

Across from me, still lazing about on her throne, Yasaka's gaze changed. It was a subtle change. Before, she had looked at me, and the rest of us by extension, as toys, prey to use for her amusement. Now, she peered at me with unrestrained curiosity. There was no way she hadn't sensed that amount of magic. She stretched and sat up straight, smirking slightly as my eyes dipped towards her chest. Fixing her dress, she stepped down onto the floor on bare feet.

"My, such an interesting show, _ambassador,_ " she purred, "You have an enchanting voice."

"Thank you, Yasaka hime-sama," I said politely. Her ears twitched and I squashed the nearly uncontrollable desire to rub them.

She turned to the servant. "Thank you for your service, Kikyo. You may go."

"Hime-sama," she gasped, scandalized, "you cannot be alone with-"

Her words were cut short by the vixen's glare and I was reminded that despite appearances, Yasaka more than qualified as an ultimate class being. "I _cannot_ …?" She spoke as though it were a question, but no one was dumb enough to take it as anything but a warning.

Kikyo managed to hold her gaze for a second, but faltered. "My apologies…"

Yasaka's lips curled into a gentle smile. "Relax, it's not as though I am truly alone," she said. I glanced once more at the throne, the sun motif as clear as… well, day. If she could draw upon Amaterasu's power as well as the ley lines of Kyoto… I stifled a shudder. With a final wave, Kikyo was dismissed. "Now, I think this place is a little large for only five of us," she said. "Please, come with me."

She led us out towards a side door, but before we could take more than three steps outside, a tiny missile of fur launched into Yasaka's stomach.

"Okaa-sama!"

To her credit, Yasaka didn't even flinch. I also noticed that she used her tails to cushion the flying tackle, more than likely for Kunou's sake than her own.

Kunou was… adorable. She looked to be about twelve or thirteen and shared her mother's golden hair and eyes. If Yasaka was the epitome of femininity, her daughter stood ast he shining example of youth. For a minute, Yasaka's aloof, if seductive smile gave way to something more tender as she stroked her daughter's ears and hair. Her tails twitched lively as she basked in her mother's affections. "Kunou," she chided gently, "what did I say about running in the halls?"

"Not to," the kit in question chirped unrepentantly.

"And how must we conduct ourselves before guests?"

"Eep!" Kunou, in her haste to win her mother's attention, apparently had not even noticed we were there. With a startled yelp, she ducked behind her mother, clutching her hakama with the fervor only a child could get away with. "Ohnonono, okaa-sama, I'm so sorry! Now they'll think all kitsune are immature or they'll think I'm not a good princess or-"

Yasaka cut her daughter off with an amused pat on the head. Behind me, I could hear stifled giggles from Amira and Valerie, though Cassandra looked a little irritated that the meeting was interrupted.

"My apologies, Ambassador Rossi," the Queen of Shadow Kyoto began, "my daughter can be… enthusiastic…" She may have apologized, as courtesy demanded, but she sure as hell wasn't actually sorry. I could see the mirth dancing in her eyes. I'd be willing to bet that she took us this way through her palace specifically so she could see our reactions to her daughter's antics.

"No harm done, Yasaka hime-sama," I said graciously. "You have a lovely daughter." I then knelt down to meet Kunou's eyes. "Hello, little one. My name is Luca Rossi and I am the ambassador from the Underworld. Pleased to meet you."

She gasped, let out another "eep" and hid further behind her mother. "D-Devil?"

Yasaka sighed good naturedly. She must have been satisfied with my response because she pushed her forward. "That is no way to greet a foreign dignitary, Kunou."

"B-But devils are scary. They kidnap little girls and nibble off our toes," she shuddered. "Kikyo says they'll turn my tails into scarves!" She squirmed, trying to escape her mother's grip. She managed two steps before nine golden tails slung out to grab her.

Beside me, Cassandra developed an obvious twitch in her eyebrow that couldn't be healthy. "Hahahahahahaha, that's hilarious," I burst out laughing and ignored Cassandra's sharp elbow. "I never thought other factions would tell scary stories about me."

If she was mortified by her daughter at all, Yasaka didn't show it. "I'm glad you think so. It seems I must have words with Kikyo," she said cooly and I felt a shiver run down my back. Damn, I didn't pity her…

"Well, Kunou ojou-sama, I assure you the devils of today have no intention of fashioning scarves from your tails, though they are quite lovely," I said as gently as I could.

"You're just saying that! Kikyo says devils are all liars!"

"All people are liars, especially politicians like me," I said with a self-depreciating chuckle. "What is important is that we own up to our mistakes and make things right." I sent Yasaka a meaningful glance.

"Indeed, daughter. Now, I think you have occupied enough of our time."

"Aww… okay…" Kunou kicked the floor despondently while her ears and tail drooped. How Valerie resisted the urge to squeal and pet her, I'll never know, but I'm still grateful.

By the time Kunou strolled away, no doubt to be distracted by some other novelty, Yasaka had led us to a much more modest room than her throne room. It reminded me of a room in a Japanese onsen, the kind that tourists would spend hundreds of dollars to spend a night in, without the futon. The room sported just one large, round table and cushions for five already laid out. Despite the sparse furniture, it was cozy and clean. I honestly wouldn't have been surprised if she had magic ninjas that hid using senjutsu prepare the room for us while we walked.

Ever the gracious host, Yasaka covered her mouth with one sleeve while she beckoned us inside. "Please, sit." Once we were all gathered, she had a servant fetch us tea and snacks. Funny thing, no one actually reaches for them in meetings like these despite being almost universally offered. After a few quiet sips of the finest tea I'd ever had, she began. "Thank you for your punctuality, ambassador. I would like to apologize for the previous interruption."

'Would like to apologize, but won't?' I thought wryly. Nonetheless, I smiled. "It is no hindrance to see such an energetic child. She will grow up to be as strong and beautiful as her mother." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cassandra nod approvingly. Step one of politics was apparently all about buttering up your partner. Then again, Kunou became a beast god in canon so I wasn't exactly lying either.

Yasaka must have seen the honest certainty on my face because she offered me a genuine smile. "I'm glad you think so."

"Indeed, but I must say I am a little more concerned about your earlier behavior," I ventured cautiously.

She giggled, nine tails flickering in and out of my vision teasingly. "Oh? From the way your eyes were roaming, I was quite certain you approved."

"Do you always try to entrance your guests with magic?" I said crossly. "Such an action is not conductive to mutual dialogue. I would request that you refrain from such displays in the future, Yasaka hime-sama."

We stared into one another's eyes, bronze to gold, before she let out a barking laugh. I thought it came with trace yips of a beast. "Ha! So you have some steel," she mused, "Perhaps I can work with you…"

To my right, Amira shuffled uncomfortably. Valerie and Cassandra were used to duplicity as par for the course given their upbringing, but my Queen was far more honest. Judging by the glint in Yasaka's eyes, that did not go unnoticed. "A test then," I mused. "I hope I passed?"

"With flying colors," she admitted readily. "So many are eager to buy into a stereotype, so eager to leave themselves vulnerable for a moment of pleasure."

"You say you are more than the seductress, but stereotypes exist for a reason," I said teasingly, "I see only the most cunning fox before me."

"Perhaps, although if anyone bucks the trend of species stereotypes, it is you, Ambassador Rossi. Now, let us get to the heart of the matter. As you are no doubt aware, the primary purpose of today's meeting was to greet one another."

"Some greeting," Amira muttered under her breath, only for Valerie to pinch her under the table.

The rest of us conveniently ignored the byplay and I gave Yasaka an apologetic smile. She hit her mouth behind a sleeve and giggled. "Now that we have taken the measure of one another, I feel it is the appropriate time to ask: What do you hope to achieve? Which issues do you seek to resolve between our two factions, Ambassador Rossi?"

I swallowed. Nothing changed. She still bore that same vulpine smirk and her tails swished lazily back and forth, but something about the way she said it told everyone in the room that the time for frivolities had passed. "Yasaka hime-sama, my ultimate goal is the glory of my master, Serafall Leviathan. When I was reincarnated into her peerage, I swore that her dream would be mine, that I would live to make my master smile."

"You are quite the thespian, ambassador."

I laughed, "Perhaps, but that is not to say that anything I've said is false. My mission, both as a diplomat and as a baron of the Underworld, is to make my master proud."

"Tell me then, what is the will of the Leviathan?" Yasaka's tone was a mix of curiosity and caution. No matter who you were, the stories of miles upon miles of frozen wasteland left in the wake of one of Serafall's spells were not tales you took lightly.

"What would you give for Kunou ojou-sama's happiness?" I began.

I knew I fucked up the moment those words left my mouth. Gone was the alluring vixen. Instead, the Queen of Youkai glared at me, her hair and tails flailing wildly under the sudden flow of magic. Once again, I found myself enthralled by her golden eyes, too slow to react to the blade of twin kama pointed at my throat. Out of the corners of my eyes, I saw that the rest of my group were in a similar situation.

"What would I give for my daughter's happiness?" Yasaka began slowly, as though mulling over the idea. "Anyone who threatens Kunou would be the first," she hissed.

Inwards, I was panicking. I had never been so terrified in my life and I met Vlad the-motherfucking-Impaler Tepes! Outwards, I took a deep breath and did my best to ignore the tickling of the blade at my throat. "That was no threat, Yasaka hime-sama," I said as gently as I could with more confidence than I felt. "Please withdraw your guards, I mention Kunou ojou-sama because it is by her you might better understand my master's will."

Slowly, ever so reluctantly, she nodded. With some unseen signal, the blades and their wielders vanished into shadows. 'Because, of course Shadow Kyoto would have fucking ninjas,' I groaned mentally. I'd have to remember that.

"Speak swiftly, _ambassador_."

I sighed. I really should have known better than to tickle her motherly instincts like that. "Hime-sama, I think your actions answer my earlier question more clearly than words can ever say. You would happily kill us all, even if it means starting a war, for even the merest idea of a threat against your daughter. It does you credit as a mother." She inclined her head a fraction. "The Leviathan is the same. Indeed, she has done precisely that. Serafall Leviathan, formerly Sitri, resolved to participate in the Underworld Civil War following the death of the original Satans and God. A part of this was due to the cruelty and pointlessness of the Old Satan Faction, but another, larger reason was that she heard her mother would seek a second child. It took Lady Sitri many decades, but the Leviathan swore that her sibling would not grow up in an age of war, an age where might makes right. So, she, with Sirzechs Gremory, Ajuka Astaroth, and Falbium Glasya-Labolas, rallied their generation and declared war on the Old Satan Faction. That, is how the Old Satan Faction came to an end, not through those who hungered for power, but because a sister wished the best for her unborn sibling."

She stayed silent and I was content to let that settle in her mind. Finally, she sighed, "You really would make an excellent thespian, ambassador. You have a flair for the dramatic. Nonetheless, you've made your point; the Leviathan desires peace for her sister, whom I know dwells in Kuoh. I had started to suspect otherwise when the Gremory and Sitri heiresses chose to live so close by but failed to send event he most cursory greetings."

Cassandra and I winced at the blatant jab. "They could not, hime-sama. As they are not a part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they have no authority to speak on behalf of the Underworld."

"Hmm, am I to take it that two siblings of the Maou are here only because they fell in love with Japanese culture? Forgive me, as flattering as that is, I don't think that's likely."

"My master runs around in hot pink swearing to high heaven that she is a magical girl. With all due respect, your argument is invalid," I deadpanned.

Yasaka had the grace to look sheepish. "Hehe, granted, but even if the Leviathan desires peace, many of your race are… less than amiable."

"They're racist bigots who believe that being a devil makes them automatically superior to pretty much anything else that breathes," I said bluntly, ignoring Cassandra's wicked glare. "Neither I nor my master have any delusions about the opinions of many of the old guard. However, I'm certain that many youkai also feel that devils have no business in Japan and would only be too happy to go to war over it."

"Yes, but I am glad to hear that at least the Maou seek peace."

"Indeed, and what, may I ask, do you want, hime-sama? My master desires peace that her sister can live in peace. The Lucifer will undoubtedly say the same. What of Kyoto?"

She laughed, much more relaxed than a minute ago. "I am in agreement. It does neither of our people good to fight. However," her eyes gained a dangerous gleam, "I will insist upon reparations for the tragedies imposed upon the nekoshou clan."

"Of course," I agreed readily. To be honest, the worst possible outcome was that she would refuse to even speak to me on grounds of the Nekoshou Genocide alone. I had an inkling that the only reason youkai leaders would be willing to negotiate with devils is that this is the only way they'd ever get any sort of compensation or closure. "I too feel that the devils wronged the nekoshou greatly. I am just one man and I realize that no amount of material goods will make up for the genocide of a species, but I will endeavor to make arrangements to the best of my ability."

At that, Yasaka laughed. "Genocide, is that what they are calling it now? Well, you are not wrong, the devils decided to kill every nekoshou in the Underworld, but rest assured, the core leaders of the nekoshou clan are alive and well. Admittedly, they rather hate you, but I think that's understandable."

"A genocide is the methodic extermination of a species, hime-sama. Whether we succeeded or not is irrelevant, only the fact that we tried. For that, we are guilty."

She smiled. "Then I look forward to your recompense. However, such heavy matters can be left for another time. Shall I expect you back in my halls next week as well?"

I nodded, "Yes, your hospitality has been delightful."

"Then go in peace, for both our peoples. As a sign of good will, I will say this: Lately, there have been several crows in Japan that are not a part of my flock."

I quirked an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Do with that information as you will, ambassador. Until next time."

 **Author's Note**

 **For the record, Kurdish food and dress is awesome.**

 **The part about Serafall making the sun in the Underworld is canon. The Underworld actually doesn't have a sun, or stars. They are light fixtures created by the Maou for the benefit of reincarnated devils.**

 **Please let me know what you think of Yasaka. The way I see it, she would be the type to test her negotiating partner's strength of will rather than his brute force. Luca became someone worth paying attention to when he found a way to negate her magical allure in a way no one else had done before, by leveraging a Sacred Gear designed for healing to dispel magic. Had he failed, Yasaka probably wouldn't have given him the time of day. She's also been shown to be extremely affectionate towards her daughter and if anyone threatened, implied or direct, to harm Kunou, I can see her throwing any chance at negotiation away to avenge that insult.**

 **Pat reon dot com slash Sorre**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Dovahkiin x Deviant**

Following our trip to Kyoto, the four of us agreed to take Sunday off to relax and prepare for school. After telling us that she would have to go to school earlier, Cassandra retired for the night. After fixing myself a cup of coffee, I peeked into our communal living room to find Valerie and Amira melted into the couch, watching an episode of Lyrical Nanoha. I chuckled and took a seat by Amira's side.

"Sera-tan," I said, more a statement of fact than a question. No one else would recommend a magical girl anime to my peerage.

"Serafall," they chorused.

Amira peeled herself from the sofa to give him a lazy smile. "It's better than I thought it would be. She said something about giving us an idea of Japanese culture, but I think she just really wanted to share her hobbies with someone." My Queen couldn't stop a giggle at the thought of the Leviathan of all people needing friends.

"You're not wrong. Sera-tan is very popular, but most people don't share in her more… eccentric hobbies."

Valerie yawned as the ending credits began to play. "I don't see why not," she mumbled sleepily. "The anime is fun, if a bit immature."

"People have set standards for what a 'mature adult' should behave like. Sera-tan is so powerful that no one is going to tell her she can't do something, but no one wants to join her either." I chuckled as a thought came to my mind. "Say, speaking of social standards, how would you two like to help me flip them on their heads?"

The two turned to me curiously. "Hmm?"

"I've been thinking about the kind of impression I want to make on Sona and Rias and I figure that the best way to represent Sera-tan is to be as wacky and out there as she is, with our own little flair, of course," I said with a devious smile.

"Didn't you already hug Sona-san?" Valerie asked.

"I did, but I haven't cemented my weirdness in the eyes of her peerage yet."

Amira sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose to dispel an imaginary headache. "You… you're going to make me, aren't you?"

"Yup," I chirped brightly, "Consider this my royal privilege."

The grumbled and griped, Amira more than Valerie, but eventually agreed. By the end of it all, I was pleasantly surprised to see my Queen get into it. Valerie, she just had to be bribed with some extra blood.

X

Morning came and the three of us ate a hurried breakfast of sausages, flatbread, and yogurt sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds and honey. The excitement of a new school must have kept Valerie alert because she had no trouble responding. I gave Amira a grateful nod for breakfast and in a handful of minutes, we were out the door.

We arrived fifteen minutes before class with Valerie still rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Onii-chan, why are we here so early?" she whined as she slumped bonelessly against my side.

I tried to nudge her away only for her to lean harder. "You're so lucky you're cute," I grumbled.

Amira giggled. "You two are adorable."

"And you're a horrible Queen. Come help your master," I said imperiously. A raspberry was the only reward for my troubles.

As we approached the gate, I ducked into a side alley and called upon Lyric Armament. Have I mentioned how much I love this thing? At my core, I'm a healer. If I could go the rest of my life without ever fighting, I would do it in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, that wasn't possible if I wanted to help Serafall. No surprise then, I love my weapon because it's useful for so much more than killing. With a mere thought, I was holding a giant boombox, the sort used in Harlem, New York by gangbangers and the very first rappers during the sixties.

I walked out of the alley and ignored the curious stares. My peerage sighed together. "We were kinda hoping you forgot…"

I shot my Queen a dazzling smile. "Me? Forget? Please, it is our duty to share the joy of music with the world!" I herded them across the street and just in front of the school.

There, I ran into the biggest hurdle to my awesome introductory plan: Sona Sitri. She stood ramrod straight, so straight that US Navy SEALs would feel inadequate at her discipline. She raised a stern eyebrow when she spied my boombox. "Rossi-san," she began.

I handed my boombox to Amira and opened my arms wide, shit-eating grin more than telling of my intentions.

The Sitri heiress grit her teeth in consternation. "Luca-san," she bit out, "what are you doing with a radio?"

I nodded and lowered my arms. Sona sighed in relief, unwanted glomp averted. "Good morning to you, too, So-tan," I said with a cheeky grin. Already, I could see her eyebrow begin to twitch in irritation.

She let out an exasperated sigh, choosing to not make a scene on the first day of school. "Is there anything I can do to get you to stop calling me that?"

"Boombox," I replied imperiously, "learn the difference, plebeian."

"I will call that thing whatever you want if you'd use my proper name."

"Hmm… nah, I like So-tan," I laughed.

"I can take it away," she warned.

"It's Lyric Armament, the same morphing weapon your sis gave me. It can just be summoned to my side," I grinned. "Besides, your school rules state that students are free to bring personal effects into the campus so long as they do not disturb the educational environment. As long as I don't play with it during class, we're fine, right?"

Sona looked like she swallowed a lemon, desperate for any reason to deny me my fun. "Fine," she groaned, "against my better judgment."

"Excellent."

"And you will keep your promise?" she growled.

"Yes, I shall not intervene in Kuoh's affairs unless they pertain directly to my duties as the ambassador and Bishop of Leviathan." I gave her my most winning smile, the same smile that got me extra dessert from the nuns during my time at the Vatican. She… was utterly unimpressed. "I just want to play some music to brighten up everyone's days. Speaking of, I suppose he shall do fine," I pointed towards a certain brown haired youth wearing a disheveled uniform and a red t-shirt.

To be fair, I couldn't have known Issei Hyoudou's face; anime didn't really translate to real life after all. No, what I felt was the distinct tremor of a dragon's power. It was faint. If I hadn't been introduced to Tiamat by Behemoth some time ago, I wouldn't have even noticed. In fact, if I didn't have future knowledge, if I didn't know that this tiny sliver was actually a small leakage of Ddraig's power, I probably would have assumed Issei only had a Twice Critical as Raynare had. No, it was even worse than that. I'm pretty sure I might have thought Asia's sprite dragon somehow made its way into the human world a few months early and pissed in his hair or something.

But, I did know better. Issei was, to the best of my knowledge, still the Red Dragon Emperor. So, I pointed towards him and nodded to my peerage.

"Seriously? That plain looking guy?" Amira scoffed.

"Yup."

"Onii-chan…"

"A-one, a-two, a-one, two, three, four!" I flipped the switch to one of the songs I prepared last night just as Issei crossed the school's threshold.

Using a bit of our natural grace as devils, the three of us fell into step behind him, mirroring each rise and fall of his feet with what would appear to be meticulously practiced marches. The boombox was slung over my shoulder, blasting the iconic intro. As one, we opened our mouths to sing:

Dovahkiin, Dovahkiin, naal ok zin los vahriin,  
Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal!  
Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan,  
Dovahkiin, fah hin kogaan mu draal!

As the intimidating drumline and haunting music filled the schoolyard, the three of us marched step by step behind Issei. At first, he had no idea what we were doing and walked on, yawning and dead to the world.

Huzrah nu, kul do od, wah aan bok lingrah vod,  
Ahrk fin tey, boziik fun, do fin gein!  
Wo lost fron wah ney dov, ahrk fin reyliik do jul,  
Voth aan suleyk wah ronit faal krein

Two verses in, Issei finally caught on and stopped. "Hey, what the hell's -"

Anything he was going to say died as he spied my two companions. His eyes immediately traced their ample curves accentuated by the Kuoh uniform. To their credit, they didn't stop singing, but took a step back from the resident lecher. I slung the boombox around without missing a beat and placed the heavy radio down with more force than absolutely necessary. If it happened to hit his toes, it's not like I did it on purpose. I was busy singing, right? RIght.

Ahrk fin zul, rok drey kod, nau tol morokei frod,  
Rul lot Taazokaan motaad voth kein!  
Sahrot Thu'um, med aan tuz, vey zeim hokoron pah,  
Ol fin Dovahkiin komeyt ok rein!

By the third verse, we had him surrounded, assailing the idiot emperor with the most imposing song in any video game. Every student and teacher was staring open-mouthed at the display.

Dovahkiin, Dovahkiin, naal ok zin los vahriin,  
Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal!  
Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan,  
Dovahkiin, fah hin kogaan mu draal!

I began to layer a bit of my magic into my voice. I saw some of the other devils in the distance, but no one but Sona noticed the minute shift in my mana. She made to stop me, but stayed her hand at the last moment. She knew that even if I were inclined to harm innocent humans, it wouldn't be in her territory. Serafall would never condone it.

Ahrk fin Kel lost prodah, do ved viing ko fin krah,  
Tol fod zeymah win kein meyz fundein!  
Alduin, feyn do jun, kruziik vokun staadnau,  
Voth aan bahlok wah diivon fin lein!

As I finished the fifth verse, I sent Sona my most charming wink, only for her to cross her arms over her chest and look away with a contemptuous sniff. I could feel the devils drawing closer. The magic in my voice would do little more than make the sound more appealing, a small audible allure that makes people less likely to interrupt my song by helping me convey the gist of the song if not its full meaning.

Nuz aan sul, fent alok, fod fin vul dovah nok,  
Fen kos nahlot mahfaeraak ahrk ruz!  
Paaz Keizaal fen kos stin nol bein Alduin jot,  
Dovahkiin kos fin saviik do muz!

The three of us took a few steps back and got ready to wrap up. We joined together again, Amira to my right and Valerie to my left. By now, my magic had flown from a trickle to a wave and even an idiot could feel my presence.

Dovahkiin, Dovahkiin, naal ok zin los vahriin,  
Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal!  
Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan  
Dovahkiin, fah hin kogaan mu draal!

We finished singing the final verse with smiles on our faces and took a bow. The school yard fell into applause, though I wasn't sure how much of that was my magic and how much was our singing. Admittedly, we had nice voices, but we certainly wouldn't have received a standing ovation for such an impromptu performance.

By this point, Rias Gremory herself had caught up to the show and eyed me suspiciously. Everyone else saw new transfer students with a flair for the performing arts. Rias sensed competition, a powerful devil who just marked Issei as a Sacred Gear holder in a way that no member of the supernatural world could deny.

Normal students heard an epic bit of song in a language they couldn't hope to understand. Rias, Sona, Cassandra, and the other devils heard it for what it was. Devils could hear and speak every language, fictional or not, and dragon-tongue was no different. I wasn't just announcing my presence; I was _declaring_ it. I wasn't saying hello; I was shouting from the rooftops that a dragon would come. It wasn't a song to set the mood so much as a prophecy. Sure, not all the lyrics fit, but none of them could deny the core message: The dragon would wake soon.

I took Amira and Valerie's hands and bowed once more. The two hastily bowed to catch up. Then, with a jaunty wave, I picked up the boombox and led my peerage inside the building. Not a moment later, the bell rang.

X 3rd Person Shift: Valerie X

"Class, we have a new student, I'm sure most of you heard her stunning voice this morning," the teacher smiled at Valerie as she fidgeted in the front of the classroom. "Don't be shy, you were amazing," she encouraged.

Any confidence the young dhampir felt by her brother's side shriveled and died an ignoble death now that she was alone. How was it that a classroom full of her peers was more intimidating than training with her brother? "H-hello, my name is Valerie Tepes and… and… I… I... "

"Yes, tell them about yourself."

In her time as the Tepes princess, she had to be well versed in political situations. At least, she had to be aware of proper etiquette. Unfortunately, none of the mannerisms of high society would avail her here. Somehow, knowing that her audience didn't want her dead made it more difficult to speak before them. Her faction had constantly looked down on her, no matter how well she did. She was the disgraceful stain on the Tepes name that only lived so long as her father protected her. Even then, sometimes only just. Here, for the first time, she was free to make her own first impression and she choked, unable to make a coherent thought. So, she blurted out the first thought that arose from this comparison.

"I… I… ILIKEVAMPIRES!" she shouted. It only took her a moment to realize what she said and even less for her face to light up like a tomato. "I mean…" she mumbled, trailing off in a haze of embarrassment and shame.

Valerie was extraordinarily fortunate; her homeroom teacher also taught English literature. "Ah, a _Dracula_ fan then?" the teacher said, excited to have a seemingly engaged student. "With a name like Tepes, i suppose you must be, Tepes-san."

After a quick bow and a quick overview of Stoker's famous book, Valerie was asked to sit down next to a brown haired girl called Nimura.

As the lessons droned on, the pig-tailed girl leaned over and whispered, "Hey, Tepes-san, right?"

"Yes?"

"Hi, I'm Ruruko Nimura, nice to meet ya." Her voice came out in a whisper, but even then, the sheer exuberance in her tone made Valerie smile.

"H-hello."

"Your song was awesome, what language was that?"

"I-I have no idea… Onii-chan had me learn it." Before she could be quizzed any further, the teacher turned around and scolded Ruruko.

X 3rd Person Shift: Cassandra X

Cassandra Foras was _furious_. She fancied herself a calm, disciplined individual. It was one thing for a woman as powerful and accomplished as the Leviathan to engage in her more eccentric hobbies, but an entirely different matter for some no-name devil like Rossi to do the same. It wasn't even the performance itself that bothered her so much as the fact that he chose to do it as his way of introducing himself to two devil heiresses. Worse, she couldn't do anything to discipline him because as much as she'd hate to admit it, Luca Rossi outranked her and the Leviathan wouldn't have any problems with his actions.

'He does have a good singing voice though,' she thought. She then immediately shook her head and clapped her cheeks to rid herself of her traitorous thoughts. 'Nonono, I'm not going that route. Shut up, me.'

She slammed her head against her new desk in the teacher's lounge then cradled her reddening forehead. It hadn't even been a week and she already wanted to go home. 'Come on, Cassandra, you've studied all your life to be a diplomat like Lady Leviathan. You can't let your immature boss get to you.'

After downing another cup of instant coffee, her third in as many minutes, she deemed herself officially pepped enough to face the day. She made her way into her new homeroom with the same trepidation she had thus far only reserved for courtrooms and her overly serious father.

The classroom was normal, as unimpressive as any other classroom she'd ever been in. Immediately, her eyes identified five figures who had apparently carved out one of the corners of the classroom for themselves. Sona Sitri sat at the front, away from the door as to better look over each classmate who came in. Beside her, Tsubaki Shinra's heterochromatic eyes met hers with a polite stare. Rias Gremory sat with her queen at the diagonal opposite point in the back of the classroom adjacent to the hall, her vibrant red hair drawing attention from both devils and humans alike. Akeno Himejima sent her an apologetic smile even as Rias scowled in irritation.

Cassandra of course had read up on the two princesses of the Gremory and Sitri houses. Their independent streaks were the stuff of legends, though they really only got away with such willfulness due to their elder siblings. She had expected that they wouldn't approve of another high class devil, never mind two, but she thought the Gremory princess would be a bit less open about it.

Finally, she turned to the last high class devil in the room. Luca Rossi sat at the final corner in the back by the window. He met her gaze with a cheery wave. 'That bastard knows he's already pissed me off,' she grumbled to herself. 'At least Amira seems to be enjoying herself.'

True enough, Rossi's Queen was chatting amicably with some human girl about the differences between Kurdistan and Japan. She clearly would have no trouble making friends. The rest of the class was filled with students, all girls with the exception of Rossi as Kuoh became gender inclusive only last year. Even without her devil hearing, she could make out half a dozen conspiracy theories about her or Rossi and Amira and the day hadn't even properly begun yet.

Cassandra resolutely ignored the gossiping students. She cleared her throat loudly, the universal sign for "I will not be ignored, but I'm too polite to punch you." After a moment, the novelty and authority of a new teacher brought her the silence she wanted.

"Thank you for your attention," she began, "As you are aware, I am your new homeroom teacher. My name is Cassandra Foras and I also teach politics and government for all seniors. In the far corner, we have two new students, Luca Rossi and Amira bint Arsalan. Every homeroom, we will begin with a salute to the national flag then i will call roll. I will then open the floor to the class representative, who will inform you of any new, school-wide announcements. Seeing how we do not have a class representative, you may take the first day to elect one."

Her no nonsense attitude and chilling professionalism earned her a respectful nod from the Sitri princess. To absolutely no one's surprise, the first time nominations for the class representative was taken, Sona Sitri took it by a landslide. She refused, as did Tsubaki Shinra, on grounds that they already represented the entire school.

"Cassandra-sensei," one of the students, 'Fuyumi Koujiyama,' Cassandra noted, said with a raised hand. "Can we nominate Luca-san or Amira-san? Actually, shouldn't we hear a bit more about them to involve them in the election process?"

Cassandra suppressed what had to be the sixtieth sigh just this morning. It wasn't Koujiyama's fault that she was a naturally outgoing student who wanted to involve her new classmates. That didn't make her any less annoying for Cassandra however. "First, Koujiyama-san, I misspoke. I introduced myself as Cassandra Foras and the new students as Luca Rossi and Amira bint Arsalan because in western conventions, you say your given name before you say your family name. Foras is my family name and I expect to be addressed as Foras-sensei. Whether Rossi-san and Arsalan-san will permit you to use their given names is up to them." She dutifully ignored what had to be mocking stares from her new boss. "Second, you will have plenty of time to be their friend later. Seeing how they are new to the school, they can't reasonably be expected to know the nuances of the administration a class representative needs. If they want to nominate themselves, they may do so on their own."

X 1st Person Shift: Luca X

I won't lie, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect from Cassandra's new class. While we reached a working agreement, I wouldn't go as far as to say we're friends. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she held a bit of resentment despite her understanding of the political reasons behind my appointment. Devils weren't exactly known as the most rational of creatures. No, if anything, she would probably go out of her way to watch me like a hawk just to make my mundane life miserable. I'd have to deal with her and I thought I knew the perfect plan.

In the end, Akeno Himejima became the class representative and school progressed like the inevitable crawl of a glacier, unnoticeable to the mountaineer, but trickling down in an unstoppable march to the sea. The moment the lunch bell rang, I picked up the boombox I left in the back of the room and dragged Amira to second floor of the main building.

I noticed that we were garnering plenty of stares from the student populace. Your everyday devil looked anywhere from Middle Eastern to European in appearance, a result of the geographic origin of their legend, so I'd have thought the students at Kuoh would be used to foreigners by now. Sona could pass for a slightly pale Japanese-European hybrid, but there just was no way Rias could be anything but 100 percent foreign. Maybe Amira is just that eye catching? Or maybe I shouldn't carry a boombox in the middle of school.

Regardless of the reason, we paid them no mind and waded through the prong of second years to reach Valerie's classroom. We stood just outside the doorway and did our best not to laugh. Valerie is, despite her status as a vampire princess, a very shy, non-confrontational girl. She doesn't exactly do well with crowds, especially if their attention is focused solely on her and it really showed.

Her classmates were firing off a question per second. Where is she from? Is it normal to be named after Dracula? How is her hair so soft? Why are her eyes red? Where did she learn to sing like that? What language was she singing in? I even caught a few of the boys trying to weasel in a question or two about her love life, no doubt hoping for a lack thereof. I glanced towards Amira and she must have thought the same as me because we cleared our throats simultaneously. The students were too busy with harassing Valerie, but she definitely heard with her enhanced hearing.

Her eyes lit up in surprise and happiness, or maybe that was hunger, when she spotted us. I waggled my eyebrows teasingly and waved her over. She bolted up, startling her classmates, and rushed to envelop Amira and I in a bone crushing hug. She's damn strong for a Bishop. "Onii-chan!" she cried. Tilting her head so no one could see, I felt her fangs brush skin.

I chuckled and ruffled her hair, gently pushing her head away from my arteries. "Sorry everyone, I'd like to eat lunch with my sister," I addressed the class with as friendly as smile as I could manage. As we walked away, I could already begin to hear the stirrings of the infamous high school rumor mill.

X

"You know, they're talking about us," Amira murmured so only we could hear. She walked at my right and Valerie at my left. Apparently, she's been reading something or other about the formal role of the Queen and remembered something to the effect of "The Queen is the right hand of the King." Or maybe that's just a result of Cassandra's lectures.

I couldn't help but laugh. I already had a burgeoning reputation as a "damn handsome" by the perverted trio. I did introduce myself to their leader in a rather spectacular fashion after all. "Yeah, I can hear them fine. We're already something like celebrities."

"I'm not sure I like that," Valerie said shyly.

"Well, if you already have the spotlight, there isn't much you can do except step up. Besides, we're one of the three devil powers in the school now. We're going to draw attention eventually, even with the normal students, so I figured it'd be best to do it on my terms."

Amira gave a non-committal hum. "I suppose."

Last night, Cassandra and I had agreed to meet up over lunch, something about setting a relevant schedule. After meeting her in the teacher's lounge, we bought some food from the cafeteria and headed outside to sit on a grassy hill overlooking the sports field. I looked around discreetly and put up a Null Space, one of the first spells I made. It essentially creates a bubble of nothing that prevents all sound from going in or out. No air, no vibration, no sound, simple enough that I made it even before becoming a devil.

"So, how's your day going, Cassie?" I started.

She glowered at me for abbreviating her name again, but it now seemed a little more resigned than the last. Soon enough, she'll just live with it. "Children are horrible creatures. How the angels can say we're worse than them is beyond me," she groaned in a rare moment of honesty. She spent so much of her time trying to appear professional that it was really something of a unique experience to watch her slump forward. "I've already had four different girls ask me if I have a lover and the chemistry teacher won't stop staring at my breasts. How did a man like that get a job here anyway?"

"By knowing better than to act on those urges," I said wryly. "It's not wrong to appreciate someone's appearance. He's allowed to look."

"And I'm allowed to be annoyed," she shot back.

I nodded, conceding the point, and sent a brief prayer for the poor idiot's safety. She just might rip out his eyes if she gets fed up. Then i promptly decided to never pray for anyone again. Being a devil kidna sucked…

Meanwhile, angled away from the school, Valerie had taken my thumb into her mouth. I felt the subtle prickling sensation of her fang piercing skin. I had long since learned to ignore the sting, especially since she sometimes failed to restrain herself in the mornings. Waking up to a giant leech stuck to your neck isn't exactly pleasant, but it'll do wonders for your tolerance training.

"So… any hints on what you'll be teaching us, sensei?" Amira tried to kick off a conversation while she nibbled a sandwich. Something about the curry bread must have disagreed with her because she took a bite, made a face, then handed it to me. " _That_ is neither curry nor bread. How do people eat this for lunch?"

"Shitty school lunches are par for the course no matter where you go," I shrugged and took a bite. Sure, it tasted like it had enough preservatives to outlive me, and I'm a devil, but it was hardly the worst thing I'd put in my mouth. I passed her my own sandwich, ham with mixed veggies, in exchange.

"I'm not going to make the lessons easier," Cassandra grunted. "If you want to know what's coming, read the syllabus. It's there for a reason."

Amira just stuck her tongue out. "Fine, jerk. Anyway, what did you really want to talk about? You're the one who said we should meet, right?"

"Right. As a teacher, I am expected to be among the first in school and among the last to leave. I'll be preparing future lessons and grading assignments long after the final bell rings."

"Do you think it'll interfere with your position in the embassy?" I asked.

"Never," she said resolutely. "I'd never let Lady Leviathan down like that."

I believed her. The way that woman idolized Serafall was kind of disturbing. "Fine, so what's the problem?"

"The problem is that we're going to have a hard time coordinating the work that needs to be done if you're in the embassy and I'm not."

I paused. That was true. She was to be my adviser and that would be rather difficult if she wasn't actually present to talk me through the minefield that was politics. "Fair point."

Beside me, Valerie removed my finger from her mouth with a dull pop. "Onii-chan, can't we stay after school to do embassy work too?"

"Only students with legitimate motives may stay after school," Cassandra sounded like she was reciting a rulebook. She probably was. "This is to preserve the security of the school as well as to make things easier for the cleaning staff. Students with legitimate motives are those who belong to cultural or athletic clubs, the student council, facing disciplinary action, or are assisting teachers upon request."

"Then we'll start a club," Amira said, "simple."

Cassandra nodded and pulled some papers from her bag. "Indeed, I've already taken steps to get myself assigned as your adviser. Fill this out and return it to the student council."

I looked it over. "Young Ambassadors' Club?" I quirked an eyebrow. That sounded like something some preppy kids would do for a pat on the back and an extra tassel over their graduation robes.

"It's the easiest way to justify your ambassadorial duties, Luca. This way, if anyone sees your work, you can pass it off as part of a simulation package I made for you."

She had a point and I told her so. "Alright, sounds a bit preppy for me, but I can't deny that it works." I looked down a bit. "Members... " After quickly scrawling down our names, I saw the bit about any entry conditions for new members. "This is interesting. I bet Sona included it so Rias isn't flooded with membership requests." On it, I wrote, "Potential members must be able to speak a minimum of three languages with professional fluency. Members will also be vetted by the club president and adviser as they deem fit." "There, impossible for normal students to join," I said, satisfied.

Cassandra looked over the paper and agreed. Due to the lack of members, I would be president, Amira would be the vice president, and Valerie would be our secretary and treasurer.

X

"What do you mean, no, So-tan?" I asked incredulously. As it turns out, every club must have a minimum of four members: a president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. In other words, I would need to expand my peerage by at least one more if I wanted a mundane excuse to stay on campus after school.

"Is there any chance you can make an exception, Sona-san?" That was Amira. We were inside the student council room, a large space twice the size of the average classroom and decorated in formal looking oaken furniture. We decided to visit Sona as a group to turn in our new club's application. At the moment, the only other student council member in the room was Tsubaki. The rest were busy making their rounds to ensure that the clubs had the appropriate funds and equipment for the new year.

"Is there any chance your King will stop calling me 'So-tan?'" she returned with an arched brow.

Amira let out an exasperated sigh, the same that was reserved for a mother whose child did something idiotic after being told not to. "Somehow, I knew your antics would bite us in the ass someday," she moaned as she sent me a half hearted glare.

"That's that and this is this."

"Explain, Luca-san, because all I see is an irritating classmate who won't stop reminding me of thing I'd rather not remember."

"You know that this is the best way for me to do my duties as both ambassador and student while coordinating with you and Rias where necessary. You can't let a running gag get in the way of official business."

Sona bit her lower lip. She knew I was right, but wasn't willing to give in so easily. "I cannot? And why can't you and Foras-sensei take your work to the embassy where you belong?"

"Because should an emergency arise, I'd like to be able to get a hold of you quickly, and vice versa. The embassy, while only a short teleportation circle away, is still three and a half miles away from the school. In an emergency, you likely won't be able to use a teleportation circle or send one of your Knights to me quickly enough. For that matter, I don't even have any Knights so we'd be hamstrung. It makes sense to let me base operations in Kuoh Academy as well," I said patiently.

"And if I say no?"

I ran my fingers through my hair. This girl really hates the thought of being supervised. 'At least I know for sure that her personal sin is pride,' I thought, 'Time to bring out the irrationally big guns.' "If you say no… A certain photo album of a certain student council president that a certain overly enthusiastic but loving magical girl onee-sama shared with me might reach the hands of a certain red haired occultist. Of course, it's just a maybe. It's not as though I can remember where I left such an incrimi - I mean, adorable set of pictures."

The reactions of the five women in the room were remarkably different. Sona paled considerably. While she considered Rias her best friend, she had no doubt that the red haired devil would mock her mercilessly. She had done the same when she found out about Rias' predilections for shounen anime after all. Revenge would be swift and agonizingly humiliating.

Tsubaki visibly winced. She knew just how much reputation meant to her King. Sona couldn't stand to be mocked or looked down on, not even by her most precious family and friends. She went out of her way to prove herself as the most intelligent person in her generation. She went out of her way to distance herself from her sister's legacy. She would not take this well.

Valerie giggled. She had stayed by my side longer than anyone, pretty much since I'd been reborn. She knew for a fact that no such album existed. It wasn't that Serafall wouldn't show me Sona's baby pictures, but that she would have shown them to Valerie as well. Serafall doted on the little vampire almost as much as she doted on me and bragged about her "adowable So-tan" to us almost religiously.

Amira rolled her eyes. "Blackmail, really?"

I merely chuckled and gave her a helpless shrug. "What can I do? Those really are too cute for words. I'll show them to you sometime," I winked and dutifully ignored something like a keening groan that rose from the back of Sona's throat.

Cassandra… looked torn between appreciating the moment, it wasn't often that someone manipulated the Sitri heiress, and chewing me out for my impropriety. Her face switched between expressions of amusement, chagrin, and finally settled on uneasy neutrality.

"You… you are the most frustrating man I've had the misfortune of interacting with, Luca-san," she bit out. I smirked in response.

"You mean to say that you're upset because someone other than Sera-tan is teasing you. And no, I preemptively reject your game of chess."

"Are you - "

I cut her off. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I am admitting that you're better at chess than I am. For one, I'm not someone who can be suckered into a bet with you at your favorite game just because you bruise my ego a bit. For another, I'm a reincarnated devil; I'm not as bound by my personal sin as you are. Frankly, I don't even know what my personal sin is. It hasn't manifested yet. I suspect it'll pop up as I interact more with other devils and truly begin to enjoy the luxury of being a noble." I decided to throw her a bone. "If it makes you feel better, I promise that I will never blackmail you using incriminating pictures of your childhood." 'Especially since I've never seen them,' I added silently.

Finally, after the rare privilege that is watching Sona Sitri squirm, she acquiesced. "Very well, I will instate the… Young Ambassadors' Club." She stared at me as though to say, 'Really? That's the name you're going with?' but did not comment. "However, the club will exist on a probationary basis. I will tell the faculty and board that the club was made for foreign students who wish to study diplomacy in the future and that I expect it to grow. I _do_ expect it to grow. Until you obtain at least one more member, you will not participate in any school events, receive funding, official endorsement, or a seat at the joint club council as a club president. _You do not get to have a vote in the running of my school._ Is that understood?"

"Crystal, So-tan," I grinned. I didn't and still don't really care about the school itself anyway. Somehow, I had a feeling that dealing with Kyoto would overshadow all other duties anyway.

 **Omake: Karma's a Bitch...**

It's been eight months since I began my training under Behemoth and Aziz. This time, Behemoth instructed me to meet him at the edge of his territory, the Familiar Forest. I was really excited. Would I gain my own familiar? As an honest man, I had to admit that the thought of an alluring fae for a maid did make me happy. Realistically, my familiar would probably be a bat or something else that used sonar, perhaps an owl or something.

"So, Behe-tan," I said with a smirk, "what are we doing today?"

He snorted, really more of a trumpet considering his massive bulk, and stomped the ground. The tremor alone almost threw me on my ass. "That's Behemoth-sensei to you, you cheeky brat." His voice rumbled throughout the clearing, its low notes sending the nearby leaves and branches shuddering.

"Maybe, but Behe-tan is a much better name, Behe-tan-sensei."

Another snort, another stomp, this time strong enough to unbalance me completely. "Enough, as you know, you will soon act as our King's right hand. Do you know where we are?"

"The Familiar Forest, the place all young devils come to to get familiars," I said drily. "So am I getting a familiar?"

"No, that I shall leave for Serafall. Or perhaps, she will permit you to come by yourself once you have a peerage of your own."

That got me curious. "Say, Behemoth-sensei, do you and Aziz-sensei have familiars?"

"Yes and no," he replied, "Most creatures in this forest listen to me so you might say that they are all my familiars. I am, after all, called the Lord of Beasts. But no, I do not have a magically bonded familiar as most devils do. As for Aziz, he is the same. So long as there is no higher authority to countermand him, birds will listen to him."

"Huh, interesting. So I don't need one if I don't want one?"

"Yes, but Serafall will likely press you to acquire one eventually. A strong familiar is indicative of a strong devil and not having one, while not ruinous to your reputation, will not reflect well on you. Besides, familiars can often be extremely useful things."

I nodded, satisfied. "So if we're not here to get me a familiar, what are we doing?"

"We are here to introduce you to a major power you may one day interact with."

'Major power…?' I thought about it for a moment, then paled. The Familiar Forest was filled with enchanted creatures, but only one could be considered truly dangerous, and sapient. "Tiamat," I breathed.

Behemoth nodded appreciatively. "Indeed, the Chaos Karma Dragon is one of the few active dragon kings and easily the most powerful. Her power is just shy of the Celestial Dragons and while she detests politics, it is appropriate to at least introduce a new member of a Maou's peerage."

"Why…" I did not whine… mostly… I wasn't exactly eager to meet a dragon king, not til I was way, way stronger. "I haven't even met any of the Pillars yet."

"Yes, the Pillar houses will want to make a formal event of it. Dinners, balls, and the like will be expected of you. Lady Tiamat will not tolerate such nuisances. It's simply easier to arrange a meeting with her, especially considering how much our territories border one anothers'."

I slumped forward, resigned to meeting the legendary dragon. I had no idea how much of the Babylonian myth would carry over. In DxD canon, Tiamat didn't appear much and really, the only thing known about her character was that she could be proud and hold a grudge. She apparently hated Ddraig for borrowing her treasures in his fight against Albion and losing them, leaving them to scatter across the world. She passed the blame on to all holders of the Boosted Gear; not exactly the kind of woman I wanted to piss off. I did have an idea of just what those treasures were though, so maybe I could offer to help look for them…

Walking through the Familiar Forest for the first time was an entirely unique experience. During my three years of travel in the human world, I saw plenty of deserts and forests with interesting wildlife, but none of the biomes could compare to the sheer diversity I witnessed now. Once, I thought I could spot a few sprite dragons darting from tree to tree in search of whatever those things ate. A few horned rabbits scurried out of the way and I even saw a giant scorpion half my height at its shoulder threaten me with its pincers. Only Behemoth's protective shadow prevented a fight.

The deeper we went, the more dangerous the creatures became. Hydra, chimera, manticore, sphinx, we saw them all and then some. The more intelligent ones nodded respectfully to the giant mammoth at my side and glared warningly at me. The message was clear: I wasn't strong enough to claim one of them as a familiar quite yet. I'd be back though. I wasn't in any rush.

I was a bit surprised at first because we didn't run into the pokemon knockoff, but apparently, Behemoth did not need Zatouji's permission to enter the forest. Zatouji was the caretaker and guide for the creatures of the forest, but he could hardly be called an ultimate class and honestly, I didn't blame him for not wanting to get in the way of a forty-eight ton mammoth.

To be fair, Behemoth wasn't quite ultimate class either. In general, his strength and endurance could definitely be counted among the ultimates, but his relatively poor speed and magical ability held him back from his fifth pair of wings. He was just on the cusp and depending on who you asked, he was either the strongest high class devil, or the weakest ultimate class devil. That wasn't to say the guy wasn't fast though, nothing says "fuck your defense" quite like a flying mammoth that could hit you at supersonic speeds. Knight's promotion for the win. As I found out from multiple labored lectures, life wasn't a video game and you couldn't rank power in such an absolute way.

Finally, after hours of walking, we reached a massive cave. Behemoth stopped me from going any further with his trunk. Then, after a single intake of air, he let out a trumpeting roar that sent every bird in a twenty mile radius flying away in panic. If I hadn't put up a Null Space barrier in time, I probably would've gone death.

"LADY TIAMAT," he shouted, "I AM BEHEMOTH AND I AM HERE TO INTRODUCE THE NEWEST MEMBER OF LEVIATHAN'S PEERAGE TO YOU!"

After a moment, I wondered if she heard at all. 'Just how heavy a sleeper do you have to be to miss that?' As I began to wonder if she was out somewhere, a gigantic torrent of blue flame headed towards us. The fire was so hot that the mouth of the cave widened by a few feet when the surrounding stone melted away.

Behemoth, being the durable bastard he is, just chuckled and stepped forward. He blew enough air out of his trunk to distort the stream, causing the flames to flow around us in a conic blast that wiped out several hundred meters of forest.

"The fuck? Why the hell would I care about some new pissant in that bitch's peerage?" a feminine grumble echoed out of the cave. "I was enjoying my afternoon nap, ya fat bastard."

Slowly, amidst the dying flames, I saw a woman step towards us. She looked visibly irked and was still rubbing sleep from her eyes. Despite her obvious irritation, I was instantly distracted by her nude body. Her supple breasts were hidden only by long, blue hair and she did nothing to cover her lower region. I started as her gaze fell on me and did my best to meet her eyes. I didn't succeed. She noticed.

"Che, another pervert. All you devils are the same," she grumbled.

"I can't help it if a beautiful woman exposes herself for me," I said. Then, I bowed from my waist. Dragons were all notoriously proud and wouldn't appreciate any sign of weakness so taking a knee was out. Not bowing to a dragon king was an equally stupid idea, so I compromised. "Lady Tiamat, my name is Luca Rossi and I am the new Bishop of Serafall Leviathan. It is an honor to meet you."

She snorted. "He's a bit formal to be one of Serafall's no?" She waved at herself and a cloak of blue flames covered her. When the flames faded, she was garbed in blue jeans, a white shirt, and a pale blue leather jacket.

"Would you prefer I address you more casually, Lady Tiamat?" I asked.

"Yeah, do that," she said, "but I might decide to kill you if you piss me off." She flared a bit of her aura and it took nearly everything I had just to stay standing.

I swallowed. A dragon's show of dominance was just that, a show of dominance. The trick, I read, was to strike a mix between a demonstration of your own strength and not appearing irreverent. Her aura, a draconic energy… it was hard to explain. Most strong magic users could release their power into the air, a sort of "I'm strong and you should notice me," message. Some could bring weaker people to their knees, or even stop their heartbeats. A dragon's… it was _denser_ , for lack of a better term. It wasn't just that she made it hard to breathe, because Behemoth and Aziz both did that, but that her aura struck a more primal chord with me. Dragons were, at their most basic, creatures of conflict and dominance. Every other living thing in the world lived fearing them to one degree or another and someone like Tiamat was capable of inspiring that instinctive fear ingrained in every individual. Nothing else could compare to that kind of distinctive presence.

In response, I walked up to her. Slowly at first. It felt as though each step was through molten lava, scalding in its intensity and as heavy as stone. I quickly picked up pace and stood face to face. "Your aura is terrifying," I admitted. "I have no idea how any other creature can survive in this forest."

She stared at me, her aquamarine eyes boring into my own with a mix of curiosity and bemusement. At last, she let out a sound that was between a snort and a laugh. "Ha, he's got spunk, Behemoth." She turned to me. "This forest exists because I am the best at hiding my presence among any dragon in existence. Child, I am _old_. I was old when the first Lucifer fell, when I birthed the gods of Babylonia. I have had long to master the art of stealth."

With that, her presence vanished. The magic I was using to press against her aura suddenly had nowhere to go and I shook at the sudden loss of pressure. If I didn't know any better, I could have easily mistaken her for a normal woman. A divinely gorgeous woman, but still, perfectly normal in power. 'Right… in canon, she managed to appear in Kuoh without even Ddraig noticing her presence.'

"Well? You have introduced yourself, Luca Rossi," Tiamat said, "Perhaps you will become more than the trash that most of your kind is. Now what will you do?"

I wouldn't have many chances to ask Tiamat questions, so I decided to go for it. "I… I'm not sure if this is something you'd be willing to talk about, but I was told that you loathed the Red Emperor." A twitch was my only answer. "What were the treasures he lost?"

"Oh? Most only ask about my relationship with Ddraig, not about the treasures themselves. Why are you interested in them?"

"You allowed Ddraig to borrow them in his battle against Albion," I said. "He obviously asked to use them in such a high level battle, so they must not be simple gold or goods. I would like to know what they were."

"And what will you do with that information?"

"I want to help you look for them," I said sincerely.

She stared at me, her eyes dancing with surprise and amusement. "Bwahahahaha, it is not often that I meet a devil who wants to do me a favor. Typically, it is the other way around. I have not told even Ajuka what these treasures are, but you already have an idea, don't you, brat?"

I smiled. "Yes, I think I know, Tiamat. The Beelzebub is honestly too busy to care about some lost treasure that may or may not yield dividends. He's likely more interested in his research than anything else." She nodded to concede the point. "I have a bit more time to look. They're the Tablets of Destiny, aren't they?"

Surprise. Amusement. Some anger at being reminded. All of these flashed across her face before she settled on open curiosity. "Indeed, I had three of them. Ddraig borrowed them and now they are lost. Tell me, what would you want in return should you find them?"

"Nothing," I said easily. "Really, I just want to be able to say I helped find the regalia that marks the throne of the universe. Well… I'd be interested in reading them," I added.

After all, the tablets were used by the Babylonian gods as the crown. Whoever held them would be the head of the gods, the literal ruler of the universe. This, of course, was before there were many other gods to contest the title, but the fact remained, Tiamat once held them. What mysteries could be written on them?

"The tablets… I first lent them to Kingu, my son and lover. They made him strong, nearly invulnerable, and allowed him to control storms, chaos, and the sea. Once united, they even grant visions of the future, hence the name. You… you don't want any of that? You just want to read them?" she asked incredulously. She seemed to mull it over then snigger uncontrollably.

"I certainly wouldn't say no if you lent them to me in turn, but I doubt you'd part with your treasures so soon after getting them back," I replied, "and there are easier ways to commit suicide than to steal a dragon's treasure."

She snorted in amusement, fighting down laughter. "You're a funny little thing."

"I'm just curious. I'll keep an eye out and if I find one, you teach me how to read it. Deal?"

She barked out a laugh that rang throughout the woods. "Very well, child. We have an accord. Find it, and I will tell you its story."

"So… any hints on what they say? It's not like they record your incestuous love life or anything, right?"

...

I… now have the dubious honor of being the only one who's ever made Tiamat blush at first meeting. Behemoth and I ran for our lives, blue flames that burn away reality itself chasing at our heels. That… that was how I met the Chaos Karma dragon… and found out she was a fucking liar and sexual deviant… because of course, it's DxD.

 **Author's Note**

 **Yeah, the first part of this chapter is sort of a comedy skit of its own, but it's also exactly the kind of shit someone who wants to be "like Serafall" would do. I hope you found that funny.**

 **Filler chapter is filler. I'm going to have to introduce characters at some point and I never really liked dropping all the names at once. Doing it a bit at a time like this feels more natural. This does mean that the story will be a bit slower at first, but hopefully it's funny/interesting enough to keep your interest.**

 **About the omake: Tiamat's three Tablet of Destiny are part of Babylonian creation mythology. In Babylonian mythology, it acts as a crown for the entire universe. Whoever holds it rules the universe. During the battle of the gods, Tiamat gave it to Kingu, her son and later consort, who used them as breastplates. Marduk, the king of the gods, killed Kingu and Tiamat. He used Kingu's blood mixed with mud to make the first human and Tiamat's body became both the earth and sky. So yeah, obviously this didn't happen in DxD, or not quite the way humans imagined it, but that should give you an idea of just how stupidly overpowered Tiamat was supposed to be.**

 **And yeah, Tiamat is an irreverent punk in this story, just because.**

 **Also, lately, I've been binge-reading fanfictions in the Worm category. For those who don't know, Worm is a web-serial by a guy named Wildbow and it's basically what you get if you mix great writing with edgy teen drama, nihilistic apocalypse scenarios, and superheroes. It's way better than it sounds, but the original story is two million words so be advised; it's a serious time commitment. If anyone has any good Worm fics they'd like to recommend, please let me know.**

 **As always, if you'd care to support my hobby or just feel like making a pity donation to a broke grad student, find me on Pat reon dot com slash Sorre.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Preface**

 **Happy Monday all, this week's chapter is fairly short because I've got my finals coming up. The next two weeks are the last before my graduation and I can't wait to be done with school.**

 **Personal woes aside, most of the reviews I've received are positive, so thank you. The most common criticism I've been getting is about how Luca is too weak as a main character, even compared to other characters I've written like Cameron Gold from On My Wings. Most of those reviews are from idiots using guest accounts to flame because he doesn't have a Longinus or a harem yet, which says a lot about the DxD fanbase actually, but enough reviews are from genuinely curious people that I feel I owe you an explanation. At the end of this chapter, I'm going to go over why that judgment is wrong and premature. I'm going to try to do that without spoiling the plot so bear with me.**

 **Anyway, enjoy chapter eight!**

 **Chapter 8: Evolution x Engagement**

'Damn, strict So-tan is pretty hot,' I thought as Tsubaki ushered me and mine out of the student council office. I noticed Tsubaki twitch in mild irritation. 'Such a loyal Queen.' "Come on, everyone. Let's go finish our noble greetings."

"Ooh, are we going to go see Rias-san?"

I wrapped one arm around Valerie's shoulders. "Yes, yes we are."

"I recommend setting up an appointment, Luca-san," Cassandra said drily. "Rias Gremory is known for being quite proud and you could do with at least one King who doesn't want you dead here."

I waved her off. "Don't worry, Cassandra, So-tan doesn't want me dead, she just really wishes I'd stop calling her 'So-tan.'"

Amira rolled her eyes. "You know, for someone who's paid to make peace, you're awfully good at pissing people off."

"Maybe, but I know when to draw the line," I said with a cheeky smile.

We left Kuoh Academy proper and entered the woods behind the academy. It couldn't properly be called a forest, not for a good mile or so, but the trees were dense enough to give the poor, deprived city kids some sense of "camping" for field trips. Almost at the edge of the Kuoh Academy property line, marked by a nondescript sign every dozen meters or so, was the Occult Research Club's headquarters, the old school building.

I'll admit it, the building is pretty creepy in its own right, a mix of gothic and Victorian style schoolhouse, a monument to the bygone days when Kuoh was just a mountainside town. Then, Tokyo expanded and Kuoh came under the metropolis' growing sphere of influence. As we approached, I felt a slight tingle in the air, a minor tug at my magic. 'Wards.' My eyes met Cassandra's and she offered me a subtle nod. 'She sensed it too.'

Neither Valerie nor Amira sensed the minor tug of magic so they panicked a little, both whipping around, shadow and flame in hand, when a crimson bat took to the air. I grabbed their wrists gently but firmly and lowered their hands. My magic reached out to the spells in their hands and by flooding the air around the flame, snuffed it out in a vacuum. Valerie's was a bit more difficult, living shadow wasn't influenced by air, but a direct infusion of mana into the spell allowed me to supplant her control with my own.

"Let's not kill Rias' familiar," I said, "I don't think she'd appreciate it."

"No, nor do I appreciate those who trespass in my territory without prior notice," came a stern voice from the schoolhouse. Sure enough, none less than the Gremory princess herself stood to greet us, Akeno Himejima standing by just behind her.

They did nothing to betray their intentions, but I could feel the air around Akeno's hands humm, as though someone subvocalizing a low note. 'Lightning at the ready then? Alert, even though she knows I'm friendly.' "I would think it's natural for me to visit my peers," I replied coolly. "I paid So-tan a visit, so now it's your turn, Rias Gremory."

A minor uptick at the corner of her mouth was the only sign she found the nickname funny. "So it seems. I suppose it would be rude of me to turn you away now."

X

Over the past weekend, when I wasn't distracted by Valerie or daydreaming about drugging Kunou with catnip, I thought about the kind of relationship I wanted with my fellow Kings. Sona was obvious: Friendship was basically guaranteed, simply due to my association with Serafall. Despite appearances, Sona genuinely loved and respected her elder sister. The fact that Serafall saw fit to revive me automatically won me a fair few brownie points. At the very least, I would be a respected, if annoying, acquaintance. More than likely, we would be much closer than that.

Rias, now there was the mystery. There was no chance that she didn't know who I was, Sona would never hide information about me from her best friend if she found out I would be sharing their city. I loosely wanted to be her friend, it'd just make life so much easier, but being a close friend would mean I'd have to play a much greater role in canon than first expected. For example, I might have to drop a hint that Issei's Gear is draconic. Nor was I so naive as to believe that helping her train for her inevitable Game against Riser would immediately make her fall for me.

In general, Rias was painted in one of two ways in fanfictions: Either she was a selfish mastermind who cared about nothing but herself and her peerage, or she was a selfish and naive girl who lucked out tremendously. More than likely, Sirzechs played a role in her stumbling on so many powerful pieces. No, regardless of my personal opinion of her, being her friend was a good idea. Having ties to her brother could only help.

For the same reason, being romantically involved with her was a horrible idea. The looming shadow of the overprotective Crimson Satan was more than enough to turn me away. Maybe I'd read too many fanfictions, but the fall of Riser could be laid squarely at Sirzechs' feet and I had no intention of becoming a person of interest in that way.

Fortunately, being her friend should be fairly easy. We stepped into a room with Kiba and Koneko already inside. Kiba stood against one wall and gave us a polite nod while Koneko ignored us entirely in favor of a plate of rather high quality manju. Rias took good care of her servants.

The ORC clubroom looked warm and casual, a stark contrast to the more professional atmosphere cultivated by Sona. Two sofas faced one another with a coffee table in the middle. To one side, an ornate desk with a comfortable chair sat for Rias to preside over her peerage. One corner of the room was covered by a large bookcase while another sported a small dresser. 'Oh yeah, she has a shower around here,' I mused. I took a seat facing Koneko, closest to Rias' desk. Amira and Valerie sat beside me while Cassandra chose to stay standing, directly behind us.

"Well, Rossi-san," she began.

I raised a finger to silence her. "Luca, please, Rias. We'll be seeing enough of each other that we'll get sick of formalities soon enough."

"Luca, then." She pursed her lips into a stern smile. "Now, what brings the third King of Kuoh to the ORC so suddenly?" I saw Koneko sit up a little straighter and Kiba's eyes widen a fraction at that.

'So they had no idea who I am then,' I concluded. "I came to say hello, Rias. It's only polite."

She hummed noncommittally. "Yes, I would have preferred a notice, but I suppose you're right."

I pretended to look around. "Rias, before we get on with introductions, I was under the impression that you had a Bishop. Was I incorrect?" I asked innocently.

"I do, but he is… indisposed." The poor redhead looked like she was sucking on a lemon.

I glanced over at Valerie, looking innocently back at us. "Gasper Vladi, if I remember correctly." I saw my Pawn startle.

"Eh! Gasper is here?" she cried, leaping out of her seat.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her to my lap. "Yup, when you told me about that friend who died, I decided to do a bit of digging. As it turns out, Rias was around and reincarnated him as her Bishop."

"P-Please let me see him, Rias-sama!" she begged. She squirmed on my lap in an attempt to reach the Gremory princess.

"You see, Rias, when they were young, both of them belonged to the Tepes faction. Due to their dhampir status, they were always shunned and ended up becoming best friends." I hummed as I pretended to think. "Now that I think about it, Val, didn't you say you used to dress him up in your clothes?"

The poor girl blushed to the tips of her roots at that. "I-It was only for fun!"

I chuckled. "It'd be hilarious if Gasper still dresses like a woman."

Looking around, my smile only grew wider at their deadpan stares. Rias gained a noticeable twitch of her ahoge. Akeno began to wring her wrists. Kiba's tranquil smile expanded until it looked uncomfortably wide. Even Koneko dropped her manju in favor of staring at my Pawn. Those stares screamed, "So you're the reason our Bishop is like this," judgingly at Valerie. My Pawn squirmed uncomfortably. "I take it he does still dress like a woman?"

"... Shut-in…" Koneko said, her expression flatter than a week old bottle of coke.

Rias sighed and I knew I'd won. She wouldn't refuse bringing him out now. "Unfortunately, Valerie, I cannot let you meet Gasper. He is unable to control his Sacred Gear and has been sealed inside his room by my onii-sama."

"That's… unfortunate…" 'I completely forgot about that…' "In that case, Valerie, why don't you leave her your phone number. That way, you and Gasper can catch up, even if it's only through phone calls." I turned back to Rias. "Also, I would request Sirzechs-sama for permission to unseal him. If nothing else, being able to see Valerie should be a good motivation for him."

Rias nodded, happy to have some way of helping her servant. "Very well, that should be possible. Now, Kiba, Koneko, this is Baron Luca Rossi, Bishop of Leviathan and ambassador to the Youkai and Shinto Factions. He will be remaining in Kuoh for a while." She then pointed first at Kiba, then Koneko. "Luca, they are Kiba, my Knight, and Koneko, my Rook." From behind her, Akeno coughed lightly, "Oh, and of course, you've met my Queen, Akeno."

I accepted their greetings genially. Kiba was a Sasuke knock-off, a revenge obsessed idiot for the first two seasons, and Koneko had family issues like, well, also like Sasuke actually. Huh… "Hello peerage of Rias Gremory. As she said, I'll be operating in Kuoh. To my right is Amira bint Arsalan, my Queen, and on my lap is Valerie Tepes, my Pawn."

Cassandra cleared her throat lightly. "Hello, Heiress Gremory, my name is Cassandra Foras, daughter of President Foras of the Seventy-Two Pillars. While I am not a part of Ambassador Rossi's peerage, I will be acting as his assistant and advisor in international matters."

"Tch, so we have four Kings," Rias muttered.

"This is not so, Heiress Gremory. I never received my evil piece set because of personal reasons. While I am a high class devil in my own right, I will not be competing with you for potential peerage members."

Rias looked visibly relieved at that, to everyone's confusion but mine and Akeno's. This was the year Riser would come knocking after all, and while she couldn't know the future, she should be feeling the pressure from both households. That look of relief passed into a look of apprehension as she faced me. "And what of you, Luca? What do you hope to do by coming here?"

"Here? I intend to introduce myself," I said cheekily. "In Kuoh? I intend to do my job, to facilitate better relations with Kyoto. Everything else, including building my peerage, is secondary so you don't have to worry so much."

"I see, thank you for taking the time to come here then."

I stood and held out a hand for her to shake. "It is only expected. Although, I will advise you. Should you ever operate in a foreign territory, at least send your greetings to Kyoto. You cannot speak for the Underworld, but you are expected to show basic courtesy as the Gremory heiress. Yasaka-hime is of the opinion that both sisters of the Maou are snubbing her," I said chidingly. Rias had the good grace to blush in shame. "Oh, please tell So-tan that as well. I don't think I mentioned it to her. Finally, be advised that I intend to set up a barrier in the forest for my peerage to train in. Farewell, Rias and company."

X

The first week passed fairly quickly. As soon as I'd gotten back to our home, I gave Jonah Screwtape, my butler, a call about setting up a training area. Two days later, I had it, perks of being in a Maou's peerage. The training ground was four square acres of land surrounded by a complex barrier system that kept humans from noticing while keeping all damage inside the circumscribed area. Apparently, the barrier used any demonic energy released in the training ground to fuel itself, simultaneously keeping that energy from escaping outside to alert other supernatural beings. It wouldn't stand up against a direct assault by an ultimate class being, but it would suffice for our purposes. That very night, I dragged both Valerie and Amira to our training ground to break it in. I invited Cassandra, but she said something about paperwork. She'd be busy trying to form a proposal for trade agreements with Kyoto. Poor thing.

That worked just as well for me. This was the sort of thing I shouldn't be sharing with people outside my peerage anyway. Amira and Valerie looked in askance at me. "Valerie, today, you will access your Sacred Gear," I said.

"Ehhh? You can't just drop that on me without warning, onii-chan!"

'My Pawn is really adorable,' I thought. I have no idea if it's because I'm in an anime world, but a panicking Valerie reminds me of a kitten dunked in cold water. She waved her arms around as though trying to fly, frantic eyes staring at everything but me. I shook the random thought aside and placed one hand on her shoulder. "Valerie, look at me," I said firmly, "You're ready. You've been with me for a year and you're as healthy as healthy can be. You've been learning to control shadows and if something goes wrong, I'll be here to keep you stable."

"Do… do you really mean it?"

I rubbed her head, pressing down her hair like I might a giant puppy and gave her my most sincere smile. "Yes."

"Woah, hold up. I know what Sacred Gears are, but what's so special about hers?" Amira cut in.

"Ah, I never told you, did I? Have you ever wondered why I gave Valerie all eight of my pawns?"

My Queen stilled. I could tell the moment realization struck her because she instantly jolted straight, eyes wide in surprise. "Longinus," she breathed.

I nodded, proud of Valerie. "Yup, to be specific, Valerie possesses Sephiroth Graal, the Holy Grail that has the potential to manipulate all aspects of life. From what I understand, Sephiroth Graal isn't a direct combat type of Gear, but is still considered a Longinus because of its sheer versatility. At its best, it can alter the biological makeup of any living thing, create, alter, and destroy souls, commune with the dead, and even resurrect someone."

"That's… that's insane!"

"Yeah, the Holy Grail is described in myth as something that can grant eternal life. That's true, but it can also do so much more and Valerie will be learning to harness a fragment of that power."

"But… onii-chan…" she whispered, "I… I don't want to hear the voices anymore. The dead… they call to me..."

I leaned in to give the trembling dhampir a hug. "You won't," I promised. "I don't expect you to have anything to do with the dead. Immortality or resurrection doesn't interest me anyway."

"But… what if they won't stop?"

"Luca, is this a good idea? Valerie looks terrified." Amira moved to her side and wrapped her in a sideways hug.

I joined them and with my Queen, wrapped Valerie inside a warm cocoon. "I actually wasn't planning on having Valerie use it, not until much later anyway, but visiting Yasaka verified some suspicions I had. What is Twilight Healing?"

"The most powerful healing Sacred Gear in the world," Amira replied by rote. She'd heard enough of that already.

I chuckled. "Technically, that's Sephiroth Graal, but you're more or less correct. Now, tell me, how does it work? Twilight Healing is famous for being able to heal anyone regardless of species, affinity, or even the user's experience and knowledge. Why?" I gently tugged them down and the three of us sat on the cool grass. Valerie leaned against my side. "It's because Twilight Healing works based off of what the wielder views as 'healthy.'"

"... I'm… confused…" Amira admitted, "I mean, that makes sense, but how is that going to help Valerie?"

"When i first met Valerie, her mind was a broken mess as a result of losing a third of the Sephiroth Graal. She basically lost a part of her soul and regressed back to being a toddler. I was able to infuse my Sacred Gear into my music and heal her mind. In Kyoto, I was able to infuse Twilight Healing into my music again to resist Yasaka's allure."

"Ah, I get it," Amira said, "You thought someone as old as Valerie should act her age, that she wasn't mentally healthy, so you healed her mind. You thought it wasn't natural or healthy to be obsessed with Yasaka's body, so you healed yourself of lust."

"Yes," I smiled, "Most users of Twilight Healing were known only for healing physical wounds, but both situations prove it: Twilight Healing works based off of what the wielder considers 'healthy.' And if I genuinely believe that hearing the voices of the dead is not conducive to Valerie's health…"

"You can shut it off." Amira scrunched her nose in thought. "Can the Twilight Healing oppose a Longinus like that though? I thought they were supposed to be uncontestable in their own domains."

I waved my hand back and forth. "Meh, kind of. There are stories of Twilight Healing being used to heal creatures with stupidly high passive magic resistance, beings like the wielder of Boosted Gear," I said. It was technically true, a story about Asia healing Issei existed, just not in this world, at this moment. "Given a dragon's natural resistance, foreign magics just shouldn't work, but it does. My guess is that personal desire plays a role in it, especially since we're devils. Valerie _wants_ me to help her shut down that part of the Graal, so it should work. Also keep in mind that Valerie doesn't have the full Sephiroth Graal at the moment. Can Twilight Healing oppose a Longinus directly? No, probably not. But is it possible, given the circumstances, to oppose one facet of the Longinus? Yes, I think so."

"Okay," Amira breathed, "I still think it's really risky, but fine. It's up to Valerie."

Both of us turned to a contemplative Valerie. She still looked nervous, but appeared determined to try. "O-Okay, but… what do you want to use it for?"

"Good question. To start, I want you to edit us," I said. "I want you to remove our weakness to light and all poisons. Amira should then be able to use Zorro in spars without killing us. I don't expect you to be able to do it immediately, so what you'll be working on today is modifying the grass. Make the grass taller, or just make it bloom. You know, something still within the realm of the natural. Then, when you get a hang of that, try something a little more unnatural like making the grass bloom into a rose or something. We can move on to fish, small mammals, then ourselves as you get better. Sound good?"

Eventually, Amira went off to do her own thing, practicing sword forms while maintaining a dozen orbs of fire orbiting around her in a dazzling display of a sword dancer surrounded by fireflies. With every step, the fireballs would follow with methodical grace, some lashing out while others rallied to defend her from an unseen foe. Amidst her dance, she would occasionally glance our way, concern for Valerie evident on her face. In my hands, Lyric Armament transformed into a guitar, strumming the tunes to a lullaby to keep her calm.

By the end of the night, Valerie had managed to get the hang of it and I'd successfully placed a block on the necromantic portion of her powers. Soon enough, I hoped to have her accelerate our physical training while making us immune to light.

X

"Ehhh? Gasper-kun? Is that really you?"

Valerie was slung face down on the couch, wearing a comfortable tank top and a pair of shorts. On the hardwood floor next to her was a bag of seaweed flavored chips, a snack item she'd grown to enjoy in her short time in Japan. A classmate introduced them to her apparently, and being the glutton she is, she took to it like a sloth to a tree.

Amira and I glanced at the animated dhampir then at one another, a slight smile on our faces. She really was like a child, an adorable, bloodsucking woman-child. After getting home and taking a shower, Valerie had commandeered the sofa to catch up with her long-lost best friend.

"I can't believe you still crossdress!" she cackled, laughing so hard she almost fell off the sofa.

I shook my head and made my way over. Snatching the bag of chips from the floor, I plopped down on her back. The satisfying sound of her spine popping filled the air.

"Eeep!" she turned the best she could to glare scoldingly at me. My only response was to pick out a chip and crunch it noisily in my teeth before reaching down to pet her lovingly.

"No making fun of neuroses you've caused," I chided. "If you want him to get out of the room, he's going to need the Lucifer's permission. For that, he'll need to control his Sacred Gear."

The implication was clear. For all her childishness, never let it be said that Val's an idiot. "Oh, Gasper~" she sang. "Do you miss me?"

"O-Of course I do, Valerie-chan," came Gasper's cry, loud enough to be heard clearly through the phone.

"Then you need to convince your King to let you out."

"I-I know, b-but I can't control my Sacred Gear," he stammered.

"So? I can't control mine either and onii-chan is helping me so your King can help you too! You better learn or you're never going to see me again!"

I rubbed her head and she leaned against my palm, enjoying the feel of my fingers scratching her scalp. Grinning, I winked at Amira. Gasper's kind of pathetic now, but I knew for a fact that he'd end up possessing one of the "new Longinus," an evolved Forbidden Balor View with enough power to make a Satan pause. Hopefully, Valerie could light a fire under his ass.

"O-OSU! I-I will, Valerie-chan! Please wait for me!"

Success. I grinned and plucked the phone from her. She made to protest, but I shoved a finger in her mouth, pricking myself against her incisor with the practiced ease of experience.

"Hello? Is this the crossdressing shut-in vampire with time-stop powers?" I said cheerily.

"Umm, hello?" came the shy voice of Rias' Bishop.

"Holy shit, you even sound like a girl," I mused before I could stop myself. Beneath me, Valerie crunched down on my finger. "Ow! Val!"

She squirmed her way until I was sitting on her stomach instead of her back and began jabbing into my ribs. "Don't. Bully. Gasper," she said, her fingers digging into my side with every word. It wasn't painful and it wasn't itchy, but a weird in-between that left me shifting uncomfortably.

"Stop that," I pulled out my finger to pinch her nose. Her response was to glare petulantly.

On a loveseat to the side, I heard Amira giggle. "Hehe, you two are like real siblings," she said, "or a pair of newlyweds."

"Yeah, without the great sex," I grumbled.

"Umm… hello?" Gasper.

"Oh, right, this guy." I placed the phone to my ear again. "Hello, Gasper, this is Luca, Valerie's King. She's being tortured to death right now and can't come to the call. If you'd like to hear from her again, nut up and get stronger." Saying so, I hung up the phone and tossed it to Amira.

"That was really mean, onii-chan," Valerie scolded, still serving as my chair. Her stomach was quite comfy actually, a perfect mix of soft fat and supple muscle.

"Maybe, but he'll try harder if we do the whole good cop/bad cop thing. Rias really needs all the help she can get."

"What's going on with her?" Amira asked.

"It's not our place to interfere," came the frosty voice of my assistant. She had stepped out of her office and into the kitchen to grab a cup of tea and some snacks.

"You're right,"I replied easily, "It would be improper for me to intervene directly, but giving her wayward Bishop a bit of motivation won't hurt."

"It's improper," she sniffed.

"What is?" my pieces asked again.

"Don't tell me you want to see the marriage go through, Cassie. Riser's an ass."

"Cassandra," she corrected. It was really more autopilot at this point. "Be that as it may, it is not our place to interfere in inter-Pillar affair, no matter how frustrating." She whispered the last, so quietly that even the sound mage thought I'd misheard.

"Rias Gremory is slated to marry Riser Phenex by their families. Riser is a womanizing asshole who collected his entire peerage for no other reason than fulfilling every sexual fetish. He even got his own little sister to join, though he probably doesn't sleep with her," I explained for the benefit of my peerage. "Rias, understandably, hates his guts. Sirzechs, her brother and the current Lucifer, would be happy to obliterate Riser for daring to objectify his sister, but can't intervene directly because the Satans are supposed to be impartial. We, as representatives of Leviathan, are in the same boat. With me so far?"

"That's horrible!"

"Why did her family arrange a marriage with that sicko?"

"The arrangement was made when they were toddlers, I think," I said. "Ruval, the eldest son of the Phenex house, is actually a stand-up guy and Ristner, the middle son, is the boss of a media conglomerate that works closely with Serafall for her shows. By all accounts, I have yet to hear anything bad about Ravel, their youngest and only daughter either. It's really just Riser that turned out to be a jackass. How that happened is anyone's guess."

"Still, can't they break it?" Amira asked.

"Not really, not if the Gremory family wants to keep their reputation. The Pillars are really old fashioned and believe that the best way to strengthen the Houses is to breed powers together. Gremory magical reserves with Bael Power of Destruction and Phenex Regeneration would be stupidly powerful. It's just, the price is Rias being able to choose who she wants to marry."

"So you're helping her indirectly by making Gasper? It's nice that you're trying to make her peerage stronger, but what's that got to do with the engagement?"

Cassandra cleared her throat lightly. "When two devils of similar standing disagree, there is only one way we settle problems: a Rating Game. Seeing how neither Heiress Gremory nor Heir Riser are likely to back down, it will most likely default to a Rating Game. At the moment, Heir Riser has a full peerage and therefore an overwhelming advantage should it come to that. He is therefore likely to press for a wedding as soon as possible in order to force the Rating Game before she has a chance to compile her peerage, or even to debut in a Game at all. To my knowledge, Heiress Rias has never actually fought in one thus far."

"H-How is that fair?" Amira sputtered. I pulled her into a hug and sat her down next to me.

"Oof! Gerroff!" Valerie wheezed.

We sheepishly stood, allowing Valerie to curl in her abused tummy. "Sorry, forgot I was sitting on you for a moment. You're very comfy." She scowled but didn't comment.

The three of us sat down on the couch and I wrapped my Queen in a sideways hug. "It's not fair, but it's how the stubborn old fools in the Pillars do things."

"Baron Rossi!"

"What, Cassie? You can't tell me you don't think some of those rules are outdated," I pointed out. "If you were in Rias' place, I'm sure you'd be doing all you can to get out of marrying Riser too."

"That doesn't mean you can insult the Pillar Lords," she scolded, but looked contemplative.

I wasn't the one who noticed, because Amira said, "Y-You're not in the same boat too, are you?"

Cassandra picked up her tea and snacks and made her way towards her office. "It's not any of your business," she mumbled before shutting the door.

 **Author's Note**

 **So, as promised, here is an explanation for why Luca isn't nearly as weak as people say he is. It's rather long, which is why I didn't bother typing this out in individual replies so if you really want the author's thoughts on the matter, read on. If not, your day is done here.**

 **First, judgments about Luca's power, and anyone else's, is premature because a) canon hasn't even started and b) Luca has had only three combat scenes, none of which are good measures of strength. One of those scenes saw him facing a vampire as a sixteen year old human with very limited training and only a holy pistol while trying to protect a family of civilians. It got him killed because realistically, that's exactly what would happen. I think the outcome was justified there. His second fight was against Behemoth and he managed to land a single hit. Behemoth has been around since before the time of Abraham and it should come as no surprise that Luca would get manhandled. His third fight wasn't really a fight so much as a light spar for his peerage to get comfortable with one another's abilities. He held himself well enough against both Valerie and Amira, eventually winning without resorting to his stronger spells.**

 **The truth is that the DxD fanbase can be divided into three types of people: stupid/horny teenagers that project themselves onto the main character to get off, people that love the idea of an amalgam world in which all mythical pantheons are real, and people that enjoy stories about super-powerful heroes that save the day. They're not mutually exclusive, but looking at other fandoms out there, I think it's safe to say that more than your average number fall into the first and third categories. Why comment on this? Because I get where you're coming from, even if I think you're wrong. You are too used to overpowered characters as DxD protagonists. Most stories in DxD revolve around MCs that have a Longinus or are crossovers of other powerful characters (e.g. Naruto Uzumaki, Shirou Emiya, MOD Harry Potter, etc.) and compared to people like that, Luca does appear weak. You're used to seeing unrealistic growth rates due to a past life as a ninja/magus/etc. or because the author is too lazy to develop something beyond "He has Divine DIviding so he can one shot Kokabiel."**

 **Some of you have compared Luca to even my own characters from other stories, namely Cameron Gold from On My Wings. That comparison isn't fair because although the chapter and word counts are similar, I skipped ahead in OMW by decades at a time. Cameron's on his second century of reborn life already. He is strong because he has to be to survive in Hueco Mundo for that time.**

 **So let me cover some of Luca's qualities that make people underestimate him. First, consider his background. Luca is a bit of a special case among DxD protagonists because he's a regular university student from our world with only a slightly above human growth rate. I went out of my way to point out in chapter one that he was a med student. It's not just a way to explain away his medical knowledge or general intelligence. Think about it: I gave him Twilight Healing. Sacred Gears are actually prisons/containers for mythic beings (dragons, fae, etc.) and users manifest them when a personal quality matches the Gear in some way. Issei's conviction and drive (for breasts), Vali's hunger for power, Asia's desire to help others for example.**

 **In other words, although Luca never became a full doctor, he is someone who takes the Hippocratic Oath very seriously: Thou shalt do no harm. In his first life, the idea of doing harm to another was anathema to him. Yes, he was reborn and yes, he understands the need to fight in this world, but the fact that he views himself predominantly as a doctor hasn't changed. He is doctor first, ambassador second, and mage third. That means his preferred method to solving conflict is to avoid if possible, talk it out if it isn't, and fight only as the final option. It's a worldview that is ideal for an ambassador, his primary job at the moment, but horrible for a warrior. You all are imagining a world where might makes right, and it's true to some degree, but there is a clear limit to that. Unlike Issei, Luca's choices reflect on Serafall as well as the Underworld as a whole; he doesn't get to just blast people away and expect everything to turn out fine because he operates on a stage greater than some small city in Japan. He operates on the international stage and his "might," or even the might of all the devils, isn't so much stronger than other factions that it's okay for him to muscle his way around. So, first point: Luca's worldview and circumstances aren't what you are used to seeing from a DxD protagonist.**

 **Second, due partly to his life in a peaceful world and partly to his personal identity and worldview as a doctor, he was a horrible exorcist candidate. By the time he left, thirteen, he was perfectly capable of beating normal humans, but having a full life's worth of memories worked against him. He'd naturally hesitate against supernatural opponents because he a) isn't sure how much force is acceptable, b) still feels on an instinctive level that his life is surreal, c) is someone who wants to avoid killing. There's also the nature of holy swords to consider. I won't lie, I actually thought about giving him Nightmare or Transparency, then decided it wouldn't work given the character I've built. Holy swords feed off of the conviction of the user, but Luca doesn't have much of that when it comes to the swords. Exorcist candidates are taught to believe that despite the existence of other pantheons,** _ **the Church is always right.**_ **Luca is an adult who can't be indoctrinated like Xenovia and Irina were in canon. He is someone who found himself in a world where gods are real, morality is flexible, and** _ **the Church most definitely isn't infallible.**_ **He has a clear idea of what obsession with the holy swords gets you: Valper. Unlike Arthur or Amira, he also doesn't have a bloodline claim to a holy sword, meaning he just isn't physically, mentally, or spiritually attached the the things. Despite his "purity" and desire to help others, he'd never be able to manifest the holy element needed because his conviction isn't in the swords or the Church.**

 **Third, people have been wondering why he hasn't developed Touki yet. My answer is that you're underestimating just how hard that is to actually manifest. Sairaorg, someone who was born with supernatural potential and near godly constitution, took over a decade of dedicated practice before learning it and Luca, mister pacifist, is supposed to get it just like that after a few years of exorcist training? Training he didn't even finish? If it was that easy, everyone in the Church would have it. Will he have it in the future? Possible. And no, Twilight Healing doesn't exponentially raise your ability to train physically. Note that muscles grow by tearing and repairing themselves. If Twilight Healing is used to automatically repair them to their original state, he wouldn't gain anything. No, what he needs to do is to enhance the body's natural recovery process and remove fatigue to allow himself to keep working through the pain. That gives him a slightly faster recovery time, but not something that'd make him Might Guy in such a short period, at least while he had the limits of a human body...**

 **Fourth, let's talk about Luca's magic. He's a double Bishop with a special affinity for sound and some minor familiarity with ice (because you can't have Serafall as your King without learning something about ice magic). And before you get into it: THE IMAGINATION MAGIC OF DEVILS IS NOT EQUAL TO WISHCRAFT. If it were, every devil would imagine themselves to be infinitely strong. Rias, the otaku, would at least have chakra, ethernano, ki, prana, and a small army of dragonites to Hyper Beam Riser to death by start of canon. All "imagination magic" means is that devils are capable of altering their spells mid-fight without complex magic circles. Where a human would need a magic circle to fire a mana arrow and a second circle to make that arrow curve, a devil can focus and imagine the arrow curving to get the same effect. Even then, the most powerful magics performed by devils still rely on magic circles because they're just that complex. Case in point Ajuka's Kankara Formula and any teleportation circle. All imagination magic gets you is efficiency of casting, and that only when you have a clear understanding of what you want. You don't get to just imagine up a ton of gold for yourself because you have to have an understanding of how atoms and molecules work still. Personal qualities like intelligence, mana pool, and magical affinity still matter so kindly stop asking me questions like why Luca hasn't recreated the Power of Destruction or something.**

 **As a mage, he's actually quite powerful and I'm honestly baffled that you guys think he's weak. The evil pieces grant power reflective of the King and the only two Kings more powerful that Serafall are the two supers. Since he's a double Bishop, it stands to reason that his magical reserve is** _ **massive**_ **for a freshly reincarnated devil. He hasn't really shown that off because he's only had one life or death battle and that was before his reincarnation.**

 **Luca's lack of showy demonstrations of force is intentional. To me, the most impressive quality of magic is not that you can blast people anyway; it's that you can alter the laws of reality. It's the most versatile skill available and the real "power" of a mage is in his flexibility, not in how large a crater he can make. When I started writing, I wanted a character who would embody this principle and I think I've done that so far.**

 **He's healed the psyche of a woman missing a third of her soul, where Asia's only been able to heal physical wounds. In under a year, he's managed to land a hit against Behemoth. He's created a single-target skill that destroys someone on a molecular level, something really only seen done by the Power of Destruction or divine-level beings in canon. And he's managed to use his Twilight Healing to no-sell the allure of an ultimate class kyubi even though the Sacred Gear hasn't ever been used that way before. Does he use his magic to blast everything to oblivion? No, or at least, not yet. But magic is about flexibility and Luca's shown that in spades rather than just becoming another stereotypical artillery.**

 **So yeah, I guess what I'm trying to say is that you're underselling Luca as a character. I know this might come off as horribly ranty, and perhaps I haven't done a good job of keeping people's interest, but this is also one of those stories that need a slower build because I'm not building on a known quantity like a Naruto insert or similar would.**

 **If you've skipped it all, then great. If you've read this whole thing, then hopefully I've convinced you that the DxD fanbase in general is way too used to immediately OP characters.**

 **Have a great week everyone,**

 **Sorre**

 **If you enjoy reading my stories, please support me on pat reon dot com slash Sorre.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Preface**

 **Hey all, as promised, a chapter every two weeks. DxD is something of a mixed bag for me, but we're finally approaching canon so cheers to that.**

 **And for those who asked, Jonah Screwtape is from C. S. Lewis' book, The Screwtape Letters. It's written from the perspective of a devil as he goes about pondering how to get men to sin. The devil, of course, is named Screwtape. I have a lot of respect for the man, both as an author and as an individual, so that was my brief homage. Admittedly, I doubt he'd want homage from a fanfiction writer delving into arguably the most perverted franchise this side of hentai, but whatever.**

 **Chapter 9: Bedside Manners x Baby Steps**

With the end of the week approaching, I roped Valerie and Amira in for one more song, one that had been on my mind since I decided on the Dovahkiin thing for Issei. It took a bit of doing, the lyrics wasn't something either would normally be caught dead singing, but a hefty dose of bribery and threats of even more embarrassing tasks made them see things my way in the end. Yeah, yeah, I'm a horrible, abusive King who delights in the humiliation of his loved ones and embodies the devil ideal. I do Serafall proud.

Akeno typically arrived at school very early so we couldn't catch the priestess on her way in. Instead, the three of us waited until lunch. As soon as the bell rang and our teacher left the room, I pulled out Lyric Armament, this time in the shape of a wickedly curved electric guitar coated in sinister red. I waggled my fingers and gave my peerage a nod.

Amira groaned. "I was hoping you forgot about this."

My grin only widened. "Please? I swear it's going to be hilarious.

Her head thumped against the desk, but she let out a resigned sigh and stood. "I hate you so much," she moaned. "Come on, Val, let's go amuse our tyrannical King."

By the time the two stood, the class realized they'd have some musical accompaniment to go with their lunch. Sona quirked an eyebrow in cautious expectation. She was about to make her way to the student council office but opted to wait and see. Rias offered me her usual demure smile, the one she used for her "Great Onee-sama" mask around the school. The subject of my little joke sat by her King. My fingers flew across the guitar in an experimental riff. With my newfound affinity for sound, the song only took me a few minutes last night to learn, a gag meant for no other purpose than my amusement.

As one, the two members of my peerage began to sing:

Na na na, come on  
Na na na, come on  
Na na na, na na come on  
Na na na, come on, come on  
Come on, na na-na na come on

Na na na, come on  
Na na na, na na, come on  
Na na na, come on, come on  
Come on, na na na na

Most of my classmates didn't recognize the song by intro alone, but I could tell one of the foreign exchange students, a Katie somethingorother from Chicago, did because her eyes widened to saucers before she broke out into a fit of uncontrollable giggles.

Valerie and Amira sashayed to the front of the room before turning as one with the beat. They then began a semi-erotic dance, running their hands over their hips, trailing up to their breasts, then into a sensual fling over their heads. As one, they flipped their hair in a move straight out of a shampoo commercial before singing the first verse. Kuoh had turned co-ed during Issei's first year, so the current third-year class was all female besides myself. That didn't mean I didn't catch a few leering eyes, however.

Feels so good being bad  
There's no way I'm turning back  
Now the pain is for pleasure  
'Cause nothing can measure

I could see some of the students from other classes trying to listen in. A few of them even seemed to get the gist of the song. First Amira, then Valerie began to stalk over to Akeno, a distinct sway to their hips that wouldn't be absent on a top model.

Love is great, love is fine  
Out the box, out of line  
The affliction of the feeling leaves me wanting more

They enclosed her on both sides before pressing themselves against her. The Priestess of Thunder sat shell-shocked, her face frozen in something resembling a smile, hands halfway to protesting before each of the girls grabbed one and ran it along their sizable breasts. They then threw their heads back, all but moaning the chorus.

'Cause I may be bad but I'm perfectly good at it  
Sex in the air, I don't care, I love the smell of it  
Sticks and stones may break my bones  
But chains and whips excite me

Next to the stunned target, Rias stared, gaping at the overt display of musical talent… Who am I kidding? She was trying to wrap her mind around the "shy, friendly Valerie-chan" that Gasper no doubt remembered with the sex icon she appeared to be at the moment. And possibly wondering how I picked out that song. She apparently gave up and fell into a cackling mess. She laughed so hard that she fell off her chair, tears teasing the corners of her eyes. Her Queen could do nothing but fondle my peerage and give her her best stink eye.

As the song continued, the crowd grew until there would be no way for anyone to forget this little performance. I glanced at Sona and Tsubaki to gauge their reactions and was disappointed to find that they'd already given up the case as a lost cause and vacated the area as fast as they could.

For most of the school, the songs would be a weird break from their everyday routines but hold no real meaning. For the more supernaturally inclined, they were damn near prophetic and it was glorious.

The song came to a close and I stood between my Queen and Pawn. As one, we gave a bow and got the hell out of dodge before a certain someone could get zap-happy.

X

Back in our embassy, Valerie sat before our massive aquarium. I'd had it installed all along one wall, from floor to ceiling, in order to provide a calming ambiance to the waiting area. Granted, we'd yet to have a single outsider step foot here, but it'd only be a matter of time.

It served another purpose, however. She had progressed at a near-miraculous pace and managed to turn a reed into a rose with the power of her Longinus. Every day, on our way back from school, we would visit a different pet shop and buy out all goldfish. Every night, Valerie would experiment with the fish, giving one lungs or another a pallet swap. Sephiroth Graal, the manipulation of life in all its forms, was one I fully intended to abuse as soon as possible.

Next to her, Amira sat around reading a treatise on elemental evocation written by Gregor Mathers himself. Not all of it applied to her, her power being instinctive rather than formulaic, but she said his observations regarding fire magic made by examining Surtr the Second was useful. She was focusing on creating hotter flames that could burn mana as easily as wood, something that would help her negate many magical defenses.

If being a pre-med student in my past life taught me anything, it's the patience and persistence to work for hours without sleep. My own workload was at least twice as heavy as their own: I had to oversee and approve Cassandra's draft of the treaty between the Youkai Faction and the Underworld, plan my desired outcome from my foreknowledge of canon, train to stay ahead of Amira's impressive physical skill, and still find time to read up on magical branches relevant for my personal growth.

I put down the grimoire I was reading and gave a few experimental plucks of Lyric Armament, a harp this time. The soothing melody streamed out from the harp to fill the floor until, in less than ten seconds, everyone but me was snoring peacefully. Yup, I'm going to be a combat bard, baby. I took some inspiration from Sona, the Maven of Strings, my favorite support character from my favorite computer game in my previous life. Not just because she was fucking gorgeous, although she was that, but also because she was so damn versatile. Shields, healing, movement and attack buffs, she could do it all. And now, in the world of DxD, where imagination and power were the only major inhibitors to a devil's magical repertoire, so could I.

Every time I brought out my power, I could feel Serafall's own magic thrumming through my veins, the twin bishops singing in approval. Each chord I played, each note I hummed, weaved an enchantment that sent everyone to the realm of Morpheus.

Having had enough, I snapped and my favored weapon turned into an electric guitar. I gave it an experimental strum, perfectly tuned as always, and began a metallic riff that flung screeching noise everywhere. There's nothing like some Avenged Sevenfold to bring everyone back to attention after all. I enchanted the music this time too. This time, I applied a bit more of what I read, a grimoire on sympathetic magic, infusing the notes and the air with aggression, drive, and focus. It was the basis for my own recreation of Sona's Hymn of Valor. In battle, I could transfer some of my own mana to my allies, energizing them and empowering their perception and power. For now, I kept it strictly to perception and focus.

They sent me some cross looks at their unwanted naps but went back to work. That night, I got to see an entire accelerated evolutionary timeline. A goldfish hopped onto land. Its scales quickly turned to glossy, permeable skin to accommodate its rudimentary lungs. Its fins gained more pronounced bones until they became webbed feet. Skin became scale once more and feet grew razor claws. Soon enough, I was looking at a miniature t-rex. Then, scales became feathers and its vestigial arms expanded into wings of vibrant blue and gold. By the time she had turned a goldfish into a parrot, Valerie's eyes drooped in exhaustion.

I picked her up in my arms in a princess carry and ruffled her hair. I smiled. She wore a self-satisfied expression even as she suppressed a yawn. I could sympathize. Upon activating a Sacred Gear, it would want to be used. They weren't fully sapient, barring a few exceptions like Ddraig, but the exploration of possibilities still excited some dormant part of them, the part that used to be alive and free. Change, after all, is a natural aspect of all living things. I tucked her into bed and resolved to start her on advanced magical theory. If and when she could make me a fire-breathing squirrel, we'd start experimenting on ourselves.

X

That weekend, we made our way to Kyoto for the first full round of negotiations. This time, we were greeted by an entirely different woman than the last. To be fair, I didn't even remember her name and I doubt Cassandra did either. She was only notable for teaching Kunou that all devils were manipulative monsters. The two of us took this minor shift in personnel for what it was, a subtle hint that Yasaka was willing to put in the effort. The new greeter was more open towards devils, or at least, better at hiding her prejudices. This would be the first full day of negotiations and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't anxious.

We were led from the rock garden to a more formal conference room, already prepared for a party of seven. I was somewhat surprised to see the Queen of Shadow Kyoto already there, clad in a vibrant red kimono decorated with embroidered chrysanthemums. To her right sat Kunou. All of the exuberance of last weekend was gone, replaced by a demure, professional grace I'd expect of a proper princess.

Yasaka must have caught my gaze because she said, "I hope you don't mind, Ambassador Rossi, after the past week, I decided that Kunou would do well to learn more about different races from direct experience rather than… hearsay."

I nodded respectfully. What else could I do? "Of course I don't mind, Yasaka hime-sama. Far be it for me to begrudge you a teachable moment." To her left sat one who appeared as an old man. He looked Chinese, not that I was a good judge of ethnicities. He looked so old that his wrinkles had wrinkles and wore a snow-white beard that wouldn't have been amiss on the likes of Gandalf or Dumbledore. What caught me by surprise was his extraordinarily long eyelashes. They reached down all the way to his jawline and curved outward into feathery tips. He must have seen me staring because he smiled congenially. I bowed politely. "My apologies, it seems we have yet to be introduced…"

He returned the bow. "I am called Ma-Yeng Xi, ambassador. I am what you might call a moth youkai, and serve as Yasaka hime-sama's minister of finance. Foras-dono and I shall compile an initial draft of the treaty then present it to both of you for final approval."

I motioned for my party to make their own introductions and took a seat across from Yasaka. "Thank you for your hard work then, Minister Xi." I turned to Kunou. "And how are you doing this morning, princess?"

She sniffed, her nose held high. "I am well, Ambassador Rossi. Thank you for asking."

Polite pleasantries done with, I bowed once more to Yasaka. She waved with a tail and the sliding doors opened for one servant who served us tea. "If you find it agreeable, I would like to hear the different proposals compiled by our assistants."

The overt politeness of Asian cultures seemed strange to me, a boy of Italian upbringing. It stood out in even greater contrast with the lazy, seductive vixen I met last week. Normally, when a westerner asks a question with only one socially acceptable answer, they are being intentionally passive-aggressive. In the East, it was more a means of engaging the negotiating partner and inviting one into formal dialogue. I shook my inner thoughts aside and politely agreed. "Of course, please continue."

I will spare you the details, but what transpired was a four hour back and forth in which neither side wanted to give up what the other really wanted. The youkai were looking for inside deals on phoenix tears and other valuable magical reagents. Short of Tiamat, the New Satan Faction did have a monopoly on the Familiar Forest after all. In their ideal world, they would have grimoires detailing some of our more esoteric magics such as the Agares time manipulation. In our ideal world, we would have texts detailing the creation of sacred treasures or their more powerful sealing arts. Suffice to say, no one at the table stood up happy by the time we broke for a brief rest.

On the youkai side, there was just too much mistrust of devils for them to acquiesce. On the side of us devils, I was woefully limited in what I could offer seeing how I would need permission from the relevant Pillar houses to even place their signature goods or techniques on the table. The Agares would need to receive something special if they were to be convinced to offer even basic manuals on time magic and I could hardly control the price of phoenix tears by myself. The government as a whole did receive a tax on some goods, usually paid in the goods themselves, so we did have a small stockpile of phoenix tears, but they were accessible through special grants authorized by the Lucifer on a case by case basis. I suspected that Grayfia rather than Sirzechs really signed off on such tedious matters, but the point stood; they were out of my reach for now. For the most part, they were stored as part of the Underworld's collective "war chest." Knowing what I know of what's coming, I couldn't exactly blame them, though it did make negotiation difficult.

Yasaka and Kunou decided to give us four the grand tour of her palace, or at least the public areas, to stretch our legs. After a few minutes of the general grandstanding expected of such lavish hosts, Yasaka broke the rhythm by leading us back out into the courtyard. This one, we hadn't seen before. I say "yard," but it's more like a small lake filled with lotus flowers and koi. I even saw a pale heron digging through the water. I wondered briefly how they kept the heron from eating all the koi but banished the thought as irrelevant. I lived in a world of magic and they specialized in intent-based seals. It wasn't worth pondering.

At the center of the lake was a gazebo, connected to the palace proper by paths of smooth stone. Upon ushering us there, her majestic personal dropped as she plopped down onto a prepared cushion. "Fuwah," she sighed, "You know, ambassador, stubbornness isn't attractive."

I chuckled and took that as my cue to take a seat. Around me, my party did the same. "That may be, but as much as I wish to impress a beautiful woman like yourself, I must consider my role here first, hime-sama."

Her ears twitched adorably. "Hoh, you find me beautiful then?" She leaned towards me on her hands, showing a fair bit of cleavage. Beside her, Kunou sighed and muttered something I couldn't quite catch.

"You and your daughter both," I replied easily, "but please stop trying to seduce me. We've established that this doesn't work."

"The Leviathan chose well," she grumbled halfheartedly but fixed her dress. "This does present a problem, however. I had hoped to offer my people some sign that diplomacy between Kyoto and Lilith can be fruitful for both sides. Yet, neither of us will budge."

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Valerie and Kunou fidgeting, already impatient with the proceedings. I gently placed one hand on Valerie's to calm her even as Yasaka did the same with her tails.

"You're not wrong…" I said. "Would you be willing to consider a more personal approach then?"

It didn't occur to me what I said until Cassandra gasped, scandalized. Amira snorted back laughter. Yasaka blinked in surprise before a vivacious grin spread across her face. "Oh? How forward," she purred.

My face practically glowed. "N-Not like that, hime-sama!"

"And how did you mean it, ambassador? I hope you meant for more than simply to seduce my okaa-sama?" Kunou said with a pointed glare. "Despite her behavior, I assure you she is not a loose woman."

Kunou hates men who try to get in her mom's panties. Who knew? Actually, that should have been obvious. "I meant that for the two sides to have a workable trade deal, we would need far more time than just one weekend. It just isn't feasible to hash out all the details in such a short amount of time." 'I'm not hitting on your mom, please don't hate me,' I tried to beg with my eyes.

"What do you propose then?" the fox queen asked, all signs of earlier jesting forgotten.

"I mean that you and I offer something that we personally possess."

"A way to assure both sides that we are making progress then," she mulled it over. "Very well, what is the ideal prize you would personally ask for?"

"Kunou ojou-chan as my Bishop," I said without hesitation. I held out my palm. "I know, I am aware that that is impossible. Even if you were agreeable, she needs to remain in Kyoto to learn to harness the ley lines. I won't even bother asking for such a thing."

"And your secondary prize?" she asked.

"Ah ah," I waggled my finger. "I told you my most desired outcome, now you."

She snorted. It came out as more of a yip. "You are certainly an audacious man, though I've yet to determine whether that is a good thing. I wouldn't say that is a desirable outcome so much as a wish made upon the stars."

"We live in a world of gods, hime-sama. Miracles have been known to happen."

"This one will not, I assure you of that." She leaned forward, clasping her palms on the table. "Very well. If I could demand anything of you personally, I would want a palace physician. Admittedly, it is not nearly so grand as my daughter's hand, but one of us must remain realistic," she said with a smile that was both pleasant yet derisive.

I nodded, conceding the point. "True, and entirely within the realm of the possible. I have little to offer personally, but my expertise in healing is certainly on the table. I would be willing to dedicate my time to heal anyone in Kyoto."

"Useful. You would personally appear before my people to help offset the negative stereotype regarding devils. What is it you seek in exchange?"

"I would like onmyodo texts on sympathetic talismans," I said simply.

"That is… a surprisingly simple thing to ask for," she said cautiously. Talismans made using the hair of the creator were very common in Japan. These talismans would warn the wearer if the creator came to harm, a basic form of sympathetic magic. In their more advanced forms, they could accomplish much more, but that requires significant time commitments into sealing script knowledge, something I wasn't keen on learning myself. She knew it, too.

"Perhaps, but I feel that this would help me advance my own magic the most. If you permit, I will arrive here Tuesday and Thursday nights to work at your people for at least three hours. I will do this for a month in exchange for rudimentary texts on sympathetic talismans. In the end, I was agreeing to twenty-four hours of work.

Needless to say, my weekly schedule got a little busier.

X Elsewhere X

A beautiful high school girl stared imploringly at a brown-haired boy. He was blushing like an idiot while rubbing the back of his head. The world's worst gambler would have been able to see his nervous tells. "I-I really enjoyed myself," he said.

The girl who could have passed for a model blushed prettily. "Then, will you do something for me, Issei-kun?"

"Anything, Yuuma-chan."

The demure smile spread into a predatory grin. "Will you die for me?"

 **Author's Note**

 **Yes, that happened. Akeno got her own theme song and it's S &M by Rihanna, because what else would it be?**

 **Also, note that Luca addresses Yasaka as "sama," or "lord/lady," because although they sit at the same table, they are not of the same status. Luca is an ambassador. She is the sovereign. She's also called "hime" or "princess" because that's just what canon says is her title. Technically, it should be "queen" or "head priestess" if we take her relationship to Amaterasu as the most relevant aspect of her authorities. Also note that East Asian royalty such as those of China, Japan, or Korea don't use the royal "we." This isn't a flaw in my writing as much as it is a nod to the history of those countries. The first Chinese emperor actually appropriated the pronoun "I" for his exclusive use and his subjects once just referred to themselves as "this foolish one" and so forth.**

 **Fun fact: "youkai," or "mysterious calamity," is the Japanese word that describes demons and monsters in general. It is a derivative of the Chinese word, "yaoguai," or "strange ghost." They mean the same thing and it wouldn't be strange for the supernatural world of China to coexist with that of Japan.**

 **This chapter was primarily filler with a touch of humor, but we are finally at the starting line. Nine chapters isn't too bad for a "prologue" of sorts, but I know most of you were waiting for this so there you go.**

 **I have officially run out of pre-written chapters and now only possess a loose storyboard for each of my stories. As such, the insane schedule of one update per week is officially over. As stated on my profile since the day I first started, updates will be once every two weeks. I'll also occasionally put out first chapters of random plot bunnies that just wouldn't leave, but you can assume that they don't interfere with the schedule unless they come out specifically on Mondays.**

 **If you enjoy my work, please consider supporting me on pat reon dot com slash Sorre.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Preface**

 **Hello everyone and a happy Monday to you all. I recently joined a discord server called Immortals Gathering. It's basically a place to chat, talk to authors, and generally hang out. Its link is** **discord . gg / 7HPmH6G** **so come chat with me. I am Roman Torchic there but give me a shout out.**

 **Also, if you'd like to find me on pat reon dot com slash Sorre.**

 **Chapter 10: Hospitals x Hellos**

I woke up on Monday as I did every morning, with an incorrigible vampire nibbling at my neck. I rolled my eyes and gently nudged the dhampir off me, well accustomed to the sting of her fangs leaving my jugular.

"Val, wake up. We've got school." I stood and got dressed in Kuoh's uniform, a set of dark gray blazer and slacks for men over a white shirt. I sighed as I finished. Val unfortunately fit the vampire stereotype to a tee: She loathed mornings. 'Shit… this song and dance again…' I glanced down and let out another groan at the small blood stains littering my pillow and bedsheets. You'd think having a mature, twenty-year-old woman crawling into your bed would be sexy as hell, and it was admittedly thrilling for the first month or two, but got old really fast. I mumbled a quick cleaning spell that one of Serafall's maids taught me to magic away the stains. I think I might be able to give Grayfia a run for her money in cleaning now… Growing irritated, I pinched her sensitive ears and tugged.

"Eep! Ow! Wha-? Onii-chan, stop, it hurts!"

X

Cassandra already having left to attend the weekly staff meeting, it was only my peerage gathered around the table. "Uwuu, onii-chan is mean," Valerie moaned as she nursed her sore ear.

"Onii-chan doesn't want to get chewed out for being late to school by So-tan," I said.

"Just go then," she mumbled, "You don't have to drag me to hell with you…"

"School isn't hell, we should know, we literally lived there."

Amira chuckled at our customary banter. As she set down three bowls of rice and soup. She'd quickly taken the role of mother hen in our group and embraced Japanese cuisine wholly. "It's not so bad, Valerie," she said, "as long as a certain tyrant doesn't have another embarrassing song to sing." She shot me a reproachful glare.

"Nope, I've got nothing for you this time."

"Half the school thinks we're into bondage."

"... I'm sorry…" I mumbled. I mean, what else can I say to that? I decided to change the topic as soon as possible. "So, Val, are you going to finally make friends in your own class instead of sneaking off to come find us at lunch?"

She stared at me, her soulful crimson eyes quivering with unshed tears. "Y-You don't want me to eat with you?"

Amira and I glanced at one another then simultaneously rolled our eyes. "You might be able to charm sirens with that look but we're both too used to it," I said dryly. "I mean that you should make friends with So-tan's Bishops. I think both Momo-chan and Reya-chan are in your class, right?"

"Besides, maybe if we eat separately, this jackass won't have us sing anymore," my Queen added.

I winced. Note to self: They really don't like singing embarrassing songs. Maybe something else next time…

"True… but I don't know them," she whispered, "and making friends is hard…"

I let out an internal sigh but did my best to hide my apprehension from Valerie. The truth was that while her mind was mostly whole, she still retained several signs of being either mentally unwell or ill-adjusted. For one, her fixation on me being her "onii-chan" was, while adorable, somewhat troubling. She was older than me at a biological age of twenty. Despite that, I was a source of comfort and if she didn't have a father figure, I was sure she'd have called me "tou-chan" instead. In many ways, I was a replacement for Marius, and wow that was a depressing thought. I made another note to kill the bastard slowly when that particular arc came around. He'd have to come find me if he wanted Valerie's Graal for himself. I doubted she'd ever grow out of this verbal tic, even if she were to acknowledge that I wasn't in fact her brother. Another troubling note was her reclusiveness. She seldom spoke with anyone outside of her peerage, the people she saw as "approved by onii-chan," which really meant Amira and only sometimes Cassandra. I couldn't exactly blame her either. She grew up knowing that her father's entire faction wanted her dead and her only sources of civil conversation were Gasper, a depressed shut-in who was no better off than her, and Marius, an asshole who played at being her brother to groom her for his own power play in the future.

I pulled Valerie into a sideways hug then ruffled her hair. "Don't worry, Val, you're going to be just fine. So-tan is a kind person and an amazing judge of character. She does not suffer fools gladly and her peerage is full of good people. Give them a chance, okay?" I said gently. Hopefully, if I could get her to associate with people outside of my peerage, it would build up her fledgling confidence.

"Okay…"

"Tell you what," I said with a cheesy grin, "This weekend, you're not coming to Kyoto with me." I placed a finger gently over her lips to stall any complaints. "You're going to go spend the weekend with Gasper, okay?"

"R-Really?"

"Yup." Anything else I wanted to say was cut short by a full-bodied tackle from Valerie that threw us to the floor.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" I smiled gently and winked at Amira even as she gave me a thumbs up. Suddenly, Valerie perked up into a sitting position. "Say, onii-chan."

"Yes?"

"I think I did it," she exclaimed.

"Did what?"

"I know how to improve physical properties with Sephiroth Graal now!"

I quirked an eyebrow. "When did this happen?"

"When you were poring over the scrolls Yasaka hime-sama gave you," Amira said dryly, "She managed it Saturday night and wanted to keep it as a surprise for you. She gave a rat a starfish's regenerative power and its tail grew back in only a few seconds. She also managed to condense the rat's body to make it denser." My Queen pointed out a small rodent in one corner of a cage. Sure enough, it was a lot smaller than a normal rat, but still with the distinctive long tail. "She should be able to duplicate the muscle fibers to make it stronger and faster. It's certainly got more stamina from how it was running around last night."

"I see." I looked up at Valerie, still straddling me, and pat her hair. "You've done well, Val. Thank you."

"Ehehee… It's nothing," she said with faint tinges of pink in her cheeks. "Amira asked me to not tell you last night so we could make sure there was nothing wrong with it."

"I should be able to sing away any abnormalities with Twilight Healing so that's fine," I said. "Tonight, we can try to give ourselves physical enhancements if you think you're up for it."

My "imouto" nodded vigorously. "Mmhm, then we can be all super duper strong!"

I chuckled lightly. "I doubt it'd be like that. You can have the body of Achilles, but you'd still need the training to refine it and the experience and skill to use it. I for one know that I'm never going to be some god of martial arts or anything. Maybe in a few decades."

"Don't put yourself down," Amira chided, "You're not that bad."

"Not bad, but not amazing either," I said honestly. "I'm always going to be a mage before I am a fighter and any close combat skills I develop will be to complement my magic, not supplant it." I motioned for Valerie to get off me so we can resume breakfast.

"Then I'll have to learn to use the Sephiroth Graal to add enchantments to the body too!" she said with a mouthful of food.

"You'll have to learn to swallow before you speak first," Amira said with a teasing smile.

X

That morning, as we were walking to school, we came upon a rather unusual sight. Issei Hyoudou running late wasn't anything new, but he was flitting around like a hummingbird, stopping everyone he could find with his phone in hand.

"Ugh, if he's showing off pictures of his dick, can I cut it off?" Amira groaned.

As much as the idea of the Eunuch Dragon Emperor kicking ass and taking names amused me, I shook my head. "No, I know for a fact that a certain redhead called dibs."

"Lady Gremory?" she asked, surprised, "You mean she wants to recruit him for her peerage? Seriously?"

"He's more than he seems," I smiled knowingly and refused to say more on the topic.

"Is that why you had us sing for him first?" Valerie asked.

"Yes, now let's see what's up." I walked over to Issei. "Yo, Hyoudou-kun, what's the rush?"

He turned to me in wonder before he recognized me. "Ah, you're that sempai that plays music!" he yelled. "Do you remember this girl?" He shoved his phone in front of me. At first, I didn't recognize her, transitioning to 3-D from an anime isn't exactly easy after all, but I quickly connected the dots. There was only one girl willing to let the pervert take pictures of her after all. Black hair, innocent expression, dazzling smile, and pinkish-violet eyes helped too.

I slowly nodded to myself. 'So it's begun. Raynare's made her move and failed.' I nodded, more sure of myself. "Yes, isn't she the girl you were screaming about last week? Something about a girl who finally gave you a chance?"

"Don't say that like it's a minor miracle, dammit," he grunted.

Amira scoffed. "Nothing minor about it, pervert."

I cut off that argument before it could begin. "Amira, behave." I looked over to Issei. "As for you, kouhai, I'm afraid I have no idea where she might be or even who she is beyond what you were making a fuss about last week. It's not like I make a habit of tracking your love life." Issei slumped as the truth weighed on him. "But, I think that whatever happened between you and the cutie in the picture, you're going to run into her soon enough. Who knows, maybe your luck with women is changing," I said with a mysterious smile and motioned for my peerage to accompany me.

X

Lunchtime came and I was glad to note my Pawn's absence. Hopefully, she'd hit it off with Reya and Momo. Amira and I moved out of the school building and onto the field bleachers, where we could have a quiet conversation. Just in case, a subtle application of Null Space ensured we would not be overheard. I hear cats have excellent hearing after all. One could never be too careful.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" she quirked an eyebrow as she tucked a lock of brown hair behind her ear.

"It's about Amano Yuuma."

"Who?"

"Issei's new girlfriend."

"Seriously?" she scowled, " _that's_ your type? I mean, sure she was pretty, but you can do better than poach someone else's girl, especially a girl that so obviously lacks taste in men… or common sense…"

I stared at her, her pretty brown eyes narrowed in judgment. Then, I laughed so hard that I almost fell off the bleachers. "Hahahahahaha! You… you think it's because I'm jealous of Issei?"

"Why else would you talk about someone else's girlfriend?"

She had a point once I thought about it. "No, I can see where you're coming from, but that's not it at all. I'm going to tell you about her because she's not his girlfriend."

"But you just sai-"

I held out a finger to stall her. "She's his murderer."

"What?" she looked puzzled and I savored the expression. Anything beyond calm serenity and kind smiles was something to be cherished from Amira.

"She's a fallen angel and her real name is Raynare. Sometime this past weekend, Issei was killed by Raynare because he possess a powerful Sacred Gear. In the end, Rias Gremory saved him and turned him into her Pawn. She'll likely have an orientation for him tonight or tomorrow night," I recited the Sparknotes version.

She mulled over the new information the spoke. "So… what's the problem? This Raynare person was stopped, right?"

"Not really," I admitted. "She didn't succeed in killing Issei, but she isn't dead either and will likely try again because the thought of leaving a powerful Sacred Gear to a devil is repulsive to her. There's also the matter of Asia Argento to consider."

"And who is that?"

"Asia Argento is a nun who was excommunicated from the Church. Before that, she was known as the 'Holy Maiden' because she could heal anything and anyone."

"That sounds like-"

"Twilight Healing? Because that's exactly what it is. Besides the Thirteen Longinus Sacred Gears, there are only a handful of truly unique ones out there and Twilight Healing, while very rare, isn't one of them. She's another wielder and she's going to be brought here so Raynare an extract the Sacred Gear from Asia's soul."

Amira looked appalled, she knew what had been done to Valerie and what extraction could mean to a Sacred Gear holder. "That's horrible! What'd she do to deserve that?"

I smiled ruefully. "What did Asia do to get excommunicated? She was kind. That's her true crime. She healed a devil and therefore committed heresy."

"No offense, but the Church is fucked up," she growled.

I smiled. Amira rarely swore, but it meant something when she did. "Yeah, yeah it is. Why do you think I ran away? Anyway, it's a problem because this is devil territory. In fact, this entire city is considered an embassy since I'm here to talk to Yasaka hime-sama."

Realization struck her like a lightning bolt. "She warned you! She said last week that there were crows gathering!"

I nodded. "Yes, she did. Anyway, normally, if those fallen were doing this somewhere else, it wouldn't really be my problem, nor would I have the authority to do something about it. Here, they're actively violating the Underworld's sovereignty and already attempted to kill Hyoudou, someone who was under a devil's protection."

"You're going to get involved. Lady Rias and Lady Sona are going to be upset with you," she said. Already, she knew those two well enough. Despite any agreements, Rias would go out of her way to keep me from "her business."

"Tough cookies for them," I shrugged, "This became my business when potential foreign agents got involved."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I'm not sure. I can move to save Asia, reach out to Azazel, or just outright kill all the fallen."

"Luca… save them."

"Them?"

"All of them. The fallen too. Even if you don't think anyone you care about will die, you should still be cautious, right? Besides, aren't those fallen angels people too? Aren't you supposed to be forging peace?" she asked, her questions piercing like knives.

I sighed. "Yes, you're right. Hopefully, I can wave Sera-tan's crest around and scare them into leaving. If not, I might have to be a little more forceful…"

X

That night, my peerage and I were gathered in our warded forest clearing, each of them sporting new tattoos on the backs of their right hands. I could have made it anything, and I was half tempted to draw hem a penis, but then I remembered that it would likely be the seal of House Rossi in the future. Despite being a baron, a noble in my own right, House Rossi had no official seal. It was too new and because my noble status was bestowed more through the fear of Leviathan than my own accomplishments, it was understood that the seal of Leviathan would suffice for me as well. Eventually, whatever seal I used to identify myself would be accepted into common use and be adopted as the seal of House Rossi to distinguish my authority from that of Serafall's.

Keeping that in mind, I shelved the prank and went with a treble clef, the universal symbol for music and sound, placed snugly inside the hexagon of a large, ornate snowflake. I initially wanted to use the Sitri symbol, but decided against it on further consideration. The Leviathan, and all the other Satans, are to be separate from their original families. As her Bishop, I could not associate myself with House Sitri in this manner either. If Serafall gave up her house seal, I could hardly take it up. Besides, putting the treble clef atop the Sitri seal would imply that I was _their_ vassal and not Serafall's. Sona would just love that…

"So… I don't mind the tattoo, but what does this do again?" Amira asked as she admired her new mark. I held out my own mark. WIth a bit of focus, a song began to play from it. I looked around for approval but only received deadpan stares. "Wee… a music player… yay…? You're going to use this just to get on my nerves aren't you?"

I slumped. "Genius always goes underappreciated."

Valerie rubbed my back comfortingly. "It's okay, onii-chan. I don't mind the magic radio," she said soothingly.

"It's not a radio… sort of. It's a lot more than that," I huffed. "The tattoo contains a bit of my own magic that resonates with any spells I use. Basically, it's an application of the sympathetic seal that Yasaka hime-sama gave me and lets me know where you are as well as cast spells through you as though you were me."

"Oh, I see…"

"Impressed yet?"

"So this lets you stalk us? Pervert."

I facepalmed before leveling my Queen with my best glare. "It'll let me be aware of the entire battlefield so long as one of you are there. It also lets me heal you through music, buff you, debuff your opponents, and ruin enemy communication through Null Space and Voice Over."

"Okay, okay, geez. It was a joke…"

"Amira's a meanie," Valerie blew her a raspberry then held her tattooed hand like it was a treasure. "So why did you offer one to Cassandra? She's not a part of the peerage."

I shrugged. "I figure it would be a good test to see how it affected people outside of my peerage. Besides, I can remove it whenever I need to."

"Say, Luca," Amira said. She waved her hand and Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegār appeared in a flurry of emerald flames. "Zorro-kun gives me some pretty powerful magic resistance. Wouldn't your little seal just burn away like everything else? It doesn't seem to be particularly high-tier magic. No offense."

"No one who's ever said 'No offense' has ever meant it," I grumbled good naturedly, "but no, it won't burn away. That's why I wanted the Shinto sympathetic magic. It's famous for being able to go through barriers and highly magic-saturated areas without problems. Otherwise, I would have just used the standard Underworld communication array and researched ways to tweak that. That, and my status as your King should let me bypass your magic resistance. I channeled a bit of my magic and "In the End" by Linkin Park began to play from her hand. "See?"

She nodded, satisfied. "Okay, cool. Now, Valerie's turn, right?"

The dhampir in question shook nervously but gave a resolute nod. "Right. Who's first?"

"Me," Amira said, "that way, Luca can keep an eye out with Twilight Healing to make sure there's nothing wrong."

Amira laid down on her back, hands clasped over her chest. Valerie knelt by her side and placed one hand on her forehead and one on her heart. "I don't really have a fancy spell for this," she admitted. "It's really just kind of 'feeling' the thing I'm transfiguring and letting the Graal do the rest."

"Don't worry, do whatever makes you comfortable. I'd rather live than listen to a fancy speech," Amira joked.

A moment later, Amira shuddered. A minute later, she gasped as the foreign sensation of Valerie's magic suffused her. In another minute, it was done. Valerie lifted her hands and I checked her over through the seal. Sure enough, she was faster, stronger, and I could see that her organs were far more efficient than before. While she wouldn't be winning punch-outs against Sairaorg or outrunning Okita Souji, her body now had the potential to rise to a comparable level with some time and dedicated training. "I see no complications," I declared to everyone's relief.

"Great, now you, onii-chan, then myself," Valerie chirped.

That night, via alterations through Sephiroth Graal, I got my third pair of wings and both my subordinates got their second. It felt strange, honestly. Am I supposed to be advancing this quickly? I know Serafall's pieces gave me a massive leg up, but still… Or is this the power of a Longinus? Is Sephiroth Graal just that much bullshit? Then, I saw Valerie sprint from one end of the clearing to the other, casually going over one hundred fifty miles per hour and decided, yes, yes it was. Amira… Amira's speed and strength dwarfed ours by a good margin, a result of her far more physical fighting style. My peerage, small as it was, now boasted two mid-tier devils. I really ought to see about that advancement exam...

X

"This way, Ambassador Rossi-dono," says a lesser kitsune, her black tail waving behind her in tentative welcome. Tuesday evening had come and as promised, I found myself in Kyoto at Yasaka's palace. To be specific, I followed the attendant to the medical wing to begin my three hour stint healing the youkai. During these three hours, Yasaka had opened the palace hospital to the public. This way, Yasaka would provide free medical care to her subjects, appearing ever the benevolent and magnanimous ruler, earning the love and adoration of her people even as the care itself cost her nothing. 'The cunning vixen is cunning,' I thought dryly, but didn't make a fuss of it. I was, after all, a doctor, and a doctor who refuses to see patients is no doctor at all.

The rustle of leathery wings caused the attendant to turn around. She quirked an eyebrow, a silent demand for an explanation. In general, a devil with all wings on display was a devil getting ready to fight, but she clearly didn't feel very threatened. I wasn't an idiot and fighting in Yasaka's palace was asking to die. "If I am to show your people that the Underworld desires peace, I must first make sure they know it is a devil that heals them, no?" I asked rhetorically as my six wings swished back and forth.

She pondered it before giving a slight nod in acceptance. At the end of the corridor, I was ushered into a waiting room where a three foot tall raccoon awaited me impatiently. "You're late, Kaede!" she barked.

"My apologies, Tsukichi-sensei, I have brought Ambassador Rossi-dono for his medical assignment."

'Ah, so that's her name,' I noted before the raccoon's gaze caught my attention. I sized her up and she must have gotten fed up with it because she raised her nose in a sniff before motioning for me to follow. "Hello, I-"

"I know who you are, ambassador. By orders of the queen, I am to give you your own office, where you will see any patients for the next three hours. I don't much care beyond that," she sniffed.

"Fair enough," I shrugged. She fit the crazy doctor stereotype to a tee. "If I might ask-"

"Yes, I'm a tanuki. Yes, this is what I normally look like. No, I won't join your peerage. Satisfied?" she said without even turning around. She opened one door and pushed me inside with surprising strength. "Your first patients are already waiting for you."

Turns out, my first patients were a bunch of tengu guards who had injured themselves from training. Of the dozen or so I healed, only eight of them left. Two of them stood at my back throughout the three hours, making sure I didn't secretly poison anyone or something. Another stood at the door and the last acted as a secretary of sorts, ushering in one patient after another. By the end of it all, while my reserves weren't too diminished, my mind certainly was. Twilight Healing wasn't all that taxing on me so it wasn't that. More than anything, I was _bored_.

"Noshiki-san, you are healed," I said with a friendly smile towards the elderly gentleman. "However, if you don't want your gout to return, I recommend eating a more balanced diet. Please try to eat less fatty foods like fish and vegetables."

He thanked me and was led out by my personal tengu retinue. Next to me, I heard an alarm go off, signaling that my three hours were up. "Oh? Please send in the next patient and inform the rest that I am finished for the day," I told the guards.

My patients saw me initially as someone to be wary of, but I guess that's why Yasaka had so many guards test my services first. The mentality was that if I was good enough for the guards of the royal palace, surely I must be good enough for everyone else too. That the tengu were looming behind me to make sure I was as good as my word didn't hurt. Slowly, rumors traveled fast and the story of a devil doctor spread quickly. In the first hour, I received only a few patients. Now, I had to kick people out. While regrettable, I had plans tonight. At about seven in the evening, I bid the angry tanuki goodbye and made my way back to Kuoh.

X

I stood just outside the wards surrounding the abandoned church, no doubt the work of my unwanted crow problem. For what had to be the sixth time that day alone, I mulled over whether or not this would be the right move. Interfering here might mean losing Rias her Bishop, not that she'd know that, and possibly an even more humiliating defeat for her against Riser. Not to mention all the times Asia saved Issei's ass in later volumes. Then again, I promised my Queen that I'd do my best to make sure everyone lives so that's what I'll do. 'Sorry, Rias, Amira means a lot more to me than you do.'

With that, I pushed forward and felt my body tingle as the wards swept over me. Not even a minute later, I found myself surrounded. Four fallen angels and around twenty rogue exorcists circled me.

It was Raynare who spoke. "You are either unbelievably brave or unbelievably stupid to come here alone, devil," she mocked. "Tell me, what is the name of the idiot I'll be killing today?"

I rolled my eyes. "Holy shit, I thought the melodrama was played up for the anime. I was wrong. Who knew?" I muttered under my breath then raised my voice. "Fallen angels, Kuoh is recognized by both the Shinto and Youkai Factions as devil territory. This church has been abandoned for decades. Why are you here and on whose authority have you come?" I asked in what Amira's taken to calling my "official" voice.

Raynare scoffed, completely disregarding my question. "We don't answer to some no-name devil. Don't expect to come here and make demands." A pink light spear formed in her hands, the burning energy scorching the air around it and causing the air to pop and sizzle.

Out of the corners of my eyes, I saw the rogue exorcists ready their blessed pistols. 'Can't have that,' I let out an internal snort. Having a four story tall mammoth old enough to have witnessed the fall of Babel and strong enough to earn Tiamat's respect charge at you in the name of "training" tends to leave you with a skewed understanding of danger. Who knew? Externally, I allowed myself a resigned sigh. "Very well then, a show of force it is."

I held out an open palm towards the four fallen and suddenly, the air was filled with the suffocating malice of demonic energy. Six wings of midnight sprang from my back. The unmistakable seal of Leviathan, a serpent surrounding an elegant snowflake, shone from my outstretched palm in a projection as large as my own body.

Almost as though rehearsed, the exorcists around me, mortals as they were, collapsed involuntarily to their knees, unable to withstand the new pressure.

I lazily waved my other hand. This time, my personal crest, the treble clef encased by Serafall's snowflake, shone, smaller than my King's but adjacent to make the relationship agonizingly obvious to all who cared to look. "You will not answer a 'no-name' devil? Very well, perhaps I was impolite in failing to introduce myself. My name is Luca Rossi, baron of the Underworld, ambassador to the Youkai Faction, and the Bishop of Serafall Leviathan. I ask you again in the name of the peace that exists between the three biblical factions now: Identify yourselves."

I could see Kalawarner and Mittelt begin to sweat, the implications of my presence striking them like lightning. Dohnaseek was trembling too, but for a very different reason. Rather than anxiety, I saw excitement in his eyes. He was as the story portrayed him, a fighter eager to challenge himself. Before he could issue a challenge, Raynare regained her bearings, her demeanor significantly more courteous, if still frosty with disdain.

"Very well, Bishop of Leviathan. We are members of the Grigori on assignment from our lord, Governor General Azazel." She shook off the pressure of my magic before continuing. "We have orders to conduct an operation in this church so that is what we will do."

'Hmm, Azazel definitely didn't order this. Most likely Kokabiel. The operation is probably Asia. Does he hope Rias will start a war? She's certainly impulsive enough…' "Then you will not leave even if I tell you that Kuoh is considered a devil embassy?"

She faltered, but looked resolved to fight. "No. We will remain until otherwise told."

"I see. In that case, please present me with Azazel's crest and your mission parameters. I will endeavor to keep the devils in Kuoh from interfering if your orders are legitimate."

"A devil accusing us of lying?" Mittelt couldn't help but scoff before Kalawarner shut her up with a quick elbow.

"Yes," I drawled, "I possess my King's crest. Until I see some similar verification, you can be lying." 'Of course you don't have one… Azazel never ordered this.'

"Nonetheless, we will not leave."

I nodded, expecting the answer. If they truly believed they were here on Azazel's orders, albeit indirectly, they would not move even on pain of death. "I understand. I will confirm with the Grigori myself then." I turned to leave. "Until then, please don't leave the church. If your orders prove false…" My power spiked exponentially, drawing pained gasps from even the fallen this time. "Then I suppose you'll be my problem to dispose of…"

Having said my piece, I walked out of the church grounds unmolested, not even Freed suicidal enough to attack me directly. 'Ugh, what a pain… At least I now have an excuse to talk to Serafall about this. Is this Kokabiel's doing? Or maybe someone else in the Grigori?' That was the problem. So many people just dumped every wrongdoing by the Grigori at Kokabiel's feet, but in this case, it might not be. A fallen angel who means well might decide that the Red Dragon Emperor is a threat to the Grigori's power seeing how they have the White. That same fallen might decide that having Twilight Healing would be beneficial and that the operation has a high chance of success if conducted in the territory of two young, naive heiresses with little to no combat experience. That same angel might consider Raynare's group an acceptable loss, calling them "rogues" if they failed. Just because Azazel wasn't likely to do this didn't mean that the other cadre felt the same.

 **Author's Note**

 **Luca calls Issei "Hyoudou-kun" because he is unfamiliar with Issei (as far as Issei knows), but is higher on the social ladder than him as his senior. "Kun" is more familiar and less respectful than "san."**

 **So I decided to end the chapter with that brief meeting with Raynare and co. Fear not. I wrote the storyboard for the entire Raynare arc of the story. There will be action. There will be humor. There will be porn... Okay, probably not porn.**

 **Why is the tanuki a sassy bitch? Because I wanted to. No reason whatsoever.**

 **On the plus side, Luca, Amira, and Valerie now have a hyper-efficient body and the potential to finally catch up to physical powerhouses like Souji and Sairaorg. Will they get touki? Possibly, but not immediately. Just what else can Valerie do?** _ **EVERYTHING**_ **. Seriously, read the description for Sephiroth Graal. Perfect manipulation of life including biological matter, mind, soul, and everything in between. It's basically Heaven's Feel from Fate, Panacea from Worm, and the Mind Stone from the Avengers rolled into one. If I could have any tool from the DxD-verse, it'd be the Sephiroth Graal. You people think I should have given Luca access to a stronger Sacred Gear. I'm actually not sure that I could have even if I wanted to.**

 **Pat reon dot com slash Sorre**

 **Discord . gg / 7HPmH6G**


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